


It Is What It Is

by ArinaMaron



Category: Naruto
Genre: Arranged Marriage, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-15
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2018-03-13 00:29:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 39,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3361091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArinaMaron/pseuds/ArinaMaron
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haruno Sakura is the princess of the Land of Whirlpools, who dreams about her prince charming, who'd become her husband. But everything changes, when she is forced to marry Hatake Kakashi. AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A not so happy beginning

It wasn't like she had any other choice. Being the surrogate daughter of the queen had its perks and throwbacks as well. Sakura had the right to attend to the council meetings and to be the lead medic of the capital's hospital. But with rights came obligations too. So when her country got defeated by its neighbor and the meetings for peace started, it was no surprise for anyone when she became the fiancée of the enemy king.

She knew all along that a day like this would come. But she hoped beyond all hopes that she'll be mistaken. That the woman she trusted the most, the person she considered as her second mother would never let something like this happen to her. But the little bubble of hopes and dreams burst in the matter of seconds, and there was no way for her to create another one.

She still remembers vividly at the afternoon of the announcement of her engagement. Sakura tried her best to mask her emotions in front of the council. She didn't allow even a slight quiver for her lips, not to mention tears to surface. The moment when she allowed herself to show weakness was when she was back in her private chambers. She cried herself into sleep, desperately trying to muffle her sobs with her pillow, even though there wasn't anyone who could've heard her.

Sakura woke up to the sound of harsh knocks on her door. The pinkette sat up and with slow moves went towards the slightly shaking door. Only one person could knock like that and the thought alone made her want to crawl back into her bed and fall asleep once again.

"I know you are in there." Tsunade said between knocks. "Open the door or I'll tear it down." This made the younger woman roll her eyes. "Sakura! You know that this is not an empty threat." Her surrogate mother growled. The younger woman could imagine the twitching of the queen's brow. Finally, Sakura twisted the key, the lock making a clicking sound. Tsunade barged in, crossing the room in a matter of seconds, only stopping when she was facing the huge window. Sakura closed the door, carefully surveying the older woman.

"I know that you are upset." Tsunade said after a long pause. She had her hands clasped behind her back, her gaze fixed on the outside view. "But this is the only way." She said softly. "I've considered many options... and this is the smallest sacrifice that we could make."

"Smallest?" Sakura raised her voice. "How could this be the smallest sacrifice, when it's your own daughter who ends up in an arranged marriage?"

"As a mother, I'm in as much of a pain as you are." Tsunade turned sharply, facing the pinkette. "But there's no other way. I…" Her gaze shifted onto a spot on the marble floor. "I am so sorry, Sakura." She finally looked at her daughter, her honey eyes filled with unimaginable pain. "Had I been younger, I would be in your place."

"But you are not." The younger woman noted bitterly.

"Sakura…" She tried to hold the pinkette's hand, but she snatched it away, before her fingers could even slightly graze her skin.

"You are selling me to a man whom I never met. And yet, I despise him to such an extent, that I can't even express it in words. He… he took away my freedom in each and every sense. Starting with invading my country and then having my hand in marriage. And you are just standing here, doing nothing!" Her voice was full of bile.

"How many times do I have to tell you that-"

"It doesn't matter how many times you say it, it won't change a thing. It won't make me calmer and it won't make me accept my fate. You can never make this better. _Never_." Sakura could feel the all too familiar sting of tears in the corner of her eyes. "How can accept that I'm being sold off like a piece of meat? Could _you_ accept it?"

"No…" Tsunade looked sideways. "I would be as infuriated as you."

"Then… do something. Help me." Sakura pleaded.

"I can't do anything! Either we give your hand in marriage to them, or we'll have to send hundreds of children to Konohagakure as a guarantee for peace." The blonde rested her gaze on the polished marble floor.

"Wh…at?"

"That bastard Danzo planned the whole thing out." Tsunade fisted her hands. "I really tried to avoid this Sakura… I really did…" Their gazes met, and the younger woman knew instantly that the words spoken to her were genuine.

"Then… I really don't have any other choice, huh?" Sakura whispered, all hope withdrawn from her. Her question was met with deafening silence, further confirming her fear.

 

* * *

 

Her palms were sweating and her fingers were trembling like never before. Her heels clicked on the pristine marble floor as she paced around the large room. She was the only person present… at least for now. As the hand of the clock moved yet again, her nervousness increased. What could probably take him so long?

The double doors on the other side of the room opened and a man entered. He had silver hair that stood at a strange angle on top of his head, the only visible part of his face was his forehead and right eye, everything else was covered up with a black mask. He was tall, but had a crouched posture and had his hands tucked in his pockets. Even his clothes weren't anything fancy, a fact that Sakura noted bitterly. After all, she had to get all dolled up for this _special_ occasion, whereas he showed up in casual clothing. All in all, this wasn't how she imagined Hatake Kakashi, king of Konohagakure and her future husband.

Sakura gulped as the man came closer and closer to her. She fisted her hands in order to stop the nervous shaking of her digits. 'Calm down, calm down.' she repeated the words in her head like a mantra faster and faster the closer he became.

"Miss Haruno, it is an honor meeting you." He said when he was standing right in front of her. He was about to reach for her right hand, in order to kiss it, but Sakura hid it behind her back.

"How about we drop unnecessary formalities?"

"Oh… you are quite straightforward." Kakashi chuckled with something akin to amusement in his voice.

"I just hate to waste my breath on unnecessary things." Sakura replied, her voice still cold. The other reason why she didn't want to waste her precious intake of oxygen was because of the damn corset she had to wear for this _special_ occasion. She'll make this event special and unforgettable all right.

"Should we sit down?" The man gestured to the two armchairs that were situated around a small table. The pinkette nodded slightly, walking towards one of the chairs. They sat in silence for some time; the only sound was the ticking of the clock.

"I…" Sakura snapped her head up when she heard him speaking. "I really don't know what to say right now." He scratched the back of his head. The girl creased her brows, feeling nothing less than dumbfounded. The man who was known as a ruthless soldier and king all around the continent was now acting as a shy, teenaged boy.

"That's strange." She folded her arms on her chest.

"Why do you think so?" He cocked his head to the side, raising a brow.

"Oh, I don't know… here you are, Hatake Kakashi, king of Konohagakure, the warlord feared by everyone. I expected more confidence from you, or something." Her words earned a chuckle from him.

"So, you think about me like that?"

"Obviously. I'm not an airhead who'd think that you are some blonde prince in shiny armor that comes and battles with the big bad dragon. Frankly, you are far from being even slightly like that." Her words made him slightly wince.

"I hope that we could become friends by getting to know each other a bit better."

"Oh, of course, let's get to know each other. Let's start with our opinion about one another." Sakura said in her most delicate voice, with a smile that was far too gentle. "I hate you." She stood up and stormed out from the room, slamming the door in order to emphasize her anger.


	2. Happy Couple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If he had to choose between boring political stuff or spending some more time with a woman who was radiating a murderous aura, he'd choose the first one…this alone spoke volumes about their relationship.
> 
> 'We are such a happy couple.' he thought dryly.

Kakashi strolled aimlessly around the palace hallways, not really sure where to go. His room was beginning to feel stuffy and boring, so he decided to go for a walk, in order to lift his mood. The only problem was that he didn't know where he should start. Well, he knew at least a handful of places, where he didn't want to go. The gardens and the dining room were out of the question. The palace staff constantly sent dirty glares at him, when they thought that he couldn't see them. Oh well, he couldn't blame them, but he felt uncomfortable nonetheless. Kakashi stopped in his tracks, when he saw an enormous door at the end of the hallway, with a silver plaque mounted on the wall next to it saying 'library'. Smiling, he entered the room, looking around.

The library had huge windows, the afternoon sun lighting the rows and rows of bookshelves. He let out a low whistle when he saw the impressive collection of books ranging from romance novels to those of the more complex physics theses. There were portraits hanging on the walls opposite to the windows, depicting the former rulers of the Land of Whirlpools, Kakashi's gaze got caught on one particular portrait, had it not been for the pink hair and green eyes, he would have completely mistaken the woman on the painting for somebody else.

Haruno Sakura was standing sideways in front of a bookshelf, her gaze set on the viewer. She was holding an opened book in her hand, sending the impression that she was disturbed by the painter while reading. Her hair was in a braided bun, with bangs framing her face. The olive green dress she was wearing looked simple, nothing like the fancy piece of clothing from yesterday. But what caught him completely off guard was the gentle look she had. The Sakura he met yesterday was nothing like the woman on the painting. She was fierce and seemed to wear her heart on her sleeve…He found these particular traits strange, even unexpected. The noble women he met up onto this point were polite and soft spoken, having a faint blush on their cheeks every time a man glanced at them. To be honest, he liked these kinds of girls; at least they were simple enough not to cause him headaches. But if he had to go by the events of yesterday, the princess was going to give him many of those.

 

* * *

 

Sakura was walking towards the palace library with a spring in her steps. Finally, after weeks of waiting, the new shipment of medical texts has arrived. The delay was partially thanks to the war, but mostly because the books they ordered were quite hard to obtain, especially the foreign one. The nations tried to keep their medical techniques a secret, afraid that their knowledge would help the enemy. This kind of mentality always angered Sakura, because medicine shouldn't be monopolized by nations, just because they were afraid to lose power and prosperity. Medicine should be accessible to everyone in need, no matter which side of the country border they belonged to.

She barged into the room, not even caring about the noise she made during her entrance. The only people in this palace who visited the library were her, Tsunade and Shizune, but Sakura was sure that those two were currently enjoying the company of Danzo and Hatake. Her gaze immediately fell on the huge piles of books on one of the tables. Sakura started to look through the books, her enthusiasm reaching new heights with each title. She almost let out a squeal when she saw one particular book. It was about the different kinds of poisons that were used in Wind Country. The author was none other than Sasori of the Red Sand, a man who was renowned of his knowledge in the field and had it not been for the stormy relationship between their countries, Sakura would've definitely asked him to tutor her.

Somebody cleared his throat on her left, making her look that way. The sudden rush of happiness and contentment deflated when she saw the last person she wanted to that day. Hatake Kakashi was standing between to bookshelves, holding a paperback in one of his hands.

"Yo." He waved with his right hand, his eyes crinkled.

"Hello." Sakura tried to restrain the acid in her voice as much as possible, seemingly surprising Hatake as well.

After an hour long lecture from Tsunade about how her outburst at the meeting was unacceptable, Sakura decided to change tactics. It wasn't like her opinion changed about the silver haired man, but she'd rather try to be a _bit_ more agreeable with him, than to go through another lecture.

"How are you?" By the glare she gave him, Kakashi instantly regretted asking this.

"Oh, I'm absolutely fantastic. I'm being engaged to some random man and then I have to leave the place where I grew up, but who could complain?" The bile in her voice made Kakashi smile nervously. She really hated him, huh?

"I-"

"Shouldn't you be at some kind of meeting with Tsunade?" Sakura cut him off, desperately trying to find another subject. She was already afraid that she'll say something really nasty to him.

Kakashi looked at his wristwatch, noting that he was already half an hour late from the meeting with Tsunade. Frankly, he'd rather not go, this political stuff was not his cup of tea…but then again, if he had to choose between boring political stuff or spending some more time with a woman who was radiating a murderous aura, he'd choose the first one…this alone spoke volumes about their relationship.

 _'_ _We are such a happy couple.'_ he thought dryly.

"Oh…I should go then." Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck, putting the book he was holding on the table in front of Sakura. That's when he noticed the book she had in her hand: 'The secret poisons of Wind Country' the front cover read.

"Should I feel concerned?" He nodded at the volume.

A gentle smile graced Sakura's lips. "Oh, don't worry-" Kakashi's eyes crinkled. Well, maybe she wasn't that bad after all. "the poison I'd use would be untraceable." Her smile turned into a malicious one in the split of a second, sending cold shivers down the man's spine.

"Riiight." He cleared his throat. "Um…see you soon." Kakashi left the library, not even waiting for the pink haired woman's answer.

 

* * *

 

Tsunade sat at a long, well-polished table with Shizune by her side. In the two seats opposite of her sat Hatake Kakashi (who by the way arrived more than half an hour later) and Danzo Shimura. The woman was starting to feel irritated by the minute but tried to act calm for the sake of her country and people. One badly chosen word and all what she had worked for might go out the window.

"The official announcement of the engagement and the ball afterwards will be held in Uzushiogakure." Tsunade said in a tone that forbade any kind of opposition.

"I believe that the capital is in no state to hold a formal event like such. The ball should be held in Konoha just like the wedding ceremony." Danzo spoke up, further aggravating the blonde.

"And I believe that we should give the chance for Sakura to say goodbye to the people she cares for. After all, not everyone will have the funds or the permission to attend the wedding." The blonde fisted the hand that rested on the surface of the table, an action that got noticed by both men.

"Do you honestly think that you are in the position of demanding anything from us? Be happy that you can get away with only minor sacrifices." Danzo raised his voice.

"Minor sacrifices-?!"

"Then let's hold the ball here." Kakashi's soft voice felt out of place in the hostile atmosphere. All three people looked at him surprised.

"But your majesty-" Kakashi held his hand up, making Danzo swallow his words.

"I think that we shouldn't add to the already existing tension just because we can. We should hold the ball here." He just didn't want things getting any uglier with Sakura. Who knows, maybe she'll really poison him if he upsets her even more.

"Thank you." Tsunade whispered.

"I believe that we have other urgent things to attend to, Danzo-san. I have yet to speak with Asuma about the condition of our soldiers. We should leave now." Kakashi stood up and stormed out from the room. Danzo followed him, but not before sending an ugly glare at the queen.

"Well, this went smoothly…" Shizune breathed out, after the door closed.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked the chapter :)
> 
> Thank you really much for reading and for the kudos!


	3. Chemistry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “But you should understand her…” The silver haired man raised a brow, urging his friend to continue. “She went from being single to being engaged in the span of a day, to someone who she never even met before…that can put a damper on the chemistry, if you ask me.”

Tsunade sat at a long, well-polished table with Shizune by her side. In the two seats opposite of her sat Hatake Kakashi (who by the way arrived more than half an hour later) and Danzo Shimura. The woman was starting to feel irritated by the minute but tried to act calm for the sake of her country and people. One badly chosen word and all what she had worked for might go out the window.

“The official announcement of the engagement and the ball afterwards will be held in Uzushiogakure.” Tsunade said in a tone that forbade any kind of opposition. 

“I believe that the capital is in no state to hold a formal event like such. The ball should be held in Konoha just like the wedding ceremony.” Danzo spoke up, further aggravating the blonde.

“And I believe that we should give the chance for Sakura to say goodbye to the people she cares for. After all, not everyone will have the funds or the permission to attend the wedding.” The blonde fisted the hand that rested on the surface of the table, an action that got noticed by both men.

“Do you honestly think that you are in the position of demanding anything from us? Be happy that you can get away with only minor sacrifices.” Danzo raised his voice.

“Minor sacrifices-?!”

“Then let’s hold the ball here.” Kakashi’s soft voice felt out of place in the hostile atmosphere. All three people looked at him surprised.

“But your majesty-” Kakashi held his hand up, making Danzo swallow his words.

“I think that we shouldn’t add to the already existing tension just because we can. We should hold the ball here.” He just didn’t want things getting any uglier with Sakura. Who knows, maybe she’ll really poison him if he upsets her even more.

“Thank you.” Tsunade whispered.

“I believe that we have other urgent things to attend to, Danzo-san. I have yet to speak with Asuma about the condition of our soldiers. We should leave now.” Kakashi stood up and stormed out from the room. Danzo followed him, but not before sending an ugly glare at the queen.

“Well, this went smoothly…” Shizune breathed out, after the door closed.

 

* * *

 

Papers, papers and more papers. The environment in which Sakura was could have been easily described like this. Her office was stacked with mountains of paperwork, all organized in neat piles. She stopped writing for a few minutes, resting her aching fingers and taking in her surroundings.

By the end of each month, her office always looked like a paper factory exploded inside of it, with requests for new supplies and other paperwork surrounding her. As the director and chief surgeon of the capital’s hospital it was her duty to organize everything which would keep the institution working smoothly. Her duties both as director and surgeon increased because of the war and even though they lost in the end, she was glad that no more people are going to die.

“Well… I guess this will be the last time I’m doing something like this.” She sighed, knowing far too well, that she’ll be living in Konoha by this time next month. A sudden knock interrupted her chain of thoughts. “Come in.” The door opened, revealing her surrogate mother. “Oh, hi. I wasn’t expecting you.” She said surprised, standing up from her seat.

“Why aren’t I surprised that you are here, practically covered in paperwork?” Tsunade chuckled.

“Well, I have to smooth out any rough edges before handing the hospital over to Shizune.” The pinkette said, removing a pile from one of the chairs, then offering the vacated space to her mother. “Besides, I’d rather immerse myself in paperwork than to break something while staying at the palace.”

“Please don’t tell me that you insulted the king once again.” Tsunade sighed, after sitting down.

“What? No! We just had a little talk in the library yesterday, that’s all.”

“About what?”

“Um…” She started writing again, trying to hide from the blonde’s scrutiny. “About books… .” The pinkette conveniently left out the part where she threatened to poison him. She really wasn’t in the mood to witness one of her mother’s outbursts.

“I had a meeting with Hatake yesterday.” The hand in which the pinkette was holding her pen stiffened. “We had a discussion about where the official announcement of your engagement would be held.”

Sakura was already feeling dread in the pit of her stomach. “Don’t tell me that they won’t let us have the ball here.”

“Well, initially it seemed like that… but then Hatake decided otherwise.”

“Oh, then should I thank him or something?” The young girl’s voice was filled with bile.

“I think that you acting nicely around him would be the greatest reward he could ever receive.”

“But I’m _trying_.” She gritted, already feeling frustrated. “But you can’t expect me to throw myself at him on a whim and declare my undying love. That’d be just plain absurd, considering who he is…”

“I’m not expecting you to be like that…it’s just that you should really try to be nicer…Danzo is ready to jump at even the slightest sign of hostility. We really don’t need any more repercussions.” Rolling her eyes, Sakura continued her work.

 

* * *

 

Everything was so peaceful where he was sitting. Quietness surrounded him; the only thing that disrupted it was the occasional bird chirping. The light breeze moved the branches above his head, together with the pages of his opened book. He closed the well-worn paperback and pulled out a black velvet box from his pocket. Kakashi opened it, revealing a white gold ring. The small leaves enclosed a rose which was carved out of white jade. The petals looked so lifelike, that one might mistake it for the real thing. Sighing, he closed the box, wrapping his fingers around it. Kakashi rested his head against the tree’s trunk, closing his eyes. Yes, everything was so peaceful.

“Mind if I join you?” Kakashi groaned. Looking down, he saw Genma grinning at him, with his hands in his pockets. His brown haired friend was wearing the standard issue Konoha military uniform.

“What do you want?” He didn’t even try to mask his irritation.

“Old man Danzo wants to talk to you.”

“Sometimes I get the feeling that I’m the one who works for him, instead of it being the other way around.” Kakashi grumbled, earning a snicker from the brown haired man. “Could you pretend like you didn’t find me?”

“Hm…” Genma tapped his chin thoughtfully. “No. That old geezer would bother me until I won’t find you, anyways.” Glaring, Kakashi jumped off from the branch he was sitting on.

“What were you doing out here?” Gemma raised a curious brow.

“Reading…it seems like this stupid tree is the only place where I can do that nowadays.”

“What about the library?”

“Well, that seemed a good plan until I met up with the princess there.”

“And?”

“She pretty much said that she’ll poison me.”

“Ouch. She’s quite feisty, eh?”

“That would be the understatement of the year.” Kakashi noted glumly. “You can picture our relationship quite clearly if I tell you that I’d rather participate in a boring meeting than to spend time with her.”

“But you should understand her…” The silver haired man raised a brow, urging his friend to continue. “She went from being single to being engaged in the span of a day, to someone who she never even met before…that can put a damper on the chemistry, if you ask me.”

“I _really_ tried to be nice with her, but she repels all of my efforts.” His voice was full of frustration.

“Did you propose to her properly?”

“Like giving her a ring? I’m planning on giving it to her today.” Kakashi gave the black velvet box to Genma. He let out a low whistle at the sight of the jewelry.

“I see you have a few tricks up on your sleeve…planning on wooing her with this? It might actually work.” He snickered.

“It was my mother’s.” Kakashi noted drily, the grin on his companion’s face vanishing. “I was thinking about giving it to her or not, but I think I should. My father told me to give it to the woman whom I’m going to wed and I don’t think that there will be any other candidate beside Sakura.”

“If you give it to her, it should be special, that could help.” 

“Should I have a candlelit dinner with her and then stand on one knee?” The thought alone made Kakashi feel uneasy. He never was a romantic guy and Sakura won’t be the person for whom he’ll break this tradition.

“Knowing you, you wouldn’t do that anyways.” Genma waved his hand dismissively. “I think you should give it to her politely as possible. Ask her to meet you at the gardens or something. Just try to be _nice_.”

“I’ll be as long as she’s nice as well.” He already dreaded the moment. 

 

* * *

  

“I can’t believe it that we are having a ball!” Ino danced happily around Sakura’s room, completely oblivious to the glare her friend was sending.

“And I can’t believe that you could be so happy about this!” The pinkette sulked.

“Stop acting like you are the martyr here. You of all people should know that you are not the only person to whom the war brought bad things”

Hearing this, Sakura felt slightly embarrassed, but it didn’t deter her from brooding. Sighing, Ino walked over to her friend kneeling down in order to be in eye level with her sitting friend.

“Look. I know that this is really hard for you.”

“No you don’t! Everyone is telling me that they know, but they know nothing!”

“Did you lose your life because of the war? Did you lose your home because of it? Did you lose one of your beloved ones thanks to it?” Ino asked the questions in a row, not even giving the pinkette enough time to respond.

“Just my freedom.” Sakura retorted, desperately trying to win the argument, even though the possibility of doing so started to fade with each moment.

“Oh, stop being a drama queen!”

“It’s so easy for you to talk like that!”

“Is it?” The blonde raised a furious brow. “Two of my cousins died in the war, my father barely made it out alive and we are nearing bankruptcy because of the blockade. But still, am I the one who’s currently moping? No, because this whole thing could’ve ended so much worse. We could’ve been killed or raped by the soldiers, but Hatake didn’t let that happen. Don’t misunderstand me, I still hate that man and his whole nation, but had it been any other country attacking us, we wouldn’t be sitting here right now. I’m not telling you to be all ecstatic however, try to think about this whole thing a bit more clearly.”

“Anyways, I have to leave now, I promised mother to help her with clearing out the green house. Most of our flowers went to waste because of the blockade, but no problem, we’ll just plant newer and prettier ones.” Ino grabbed her bag and headed towards the door. “If you are brought down, then stand up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew... this chapter took some time... I'm really sorry, but I got a little bit busy with university stuff. Anyways, thank you really much to those who gave kudos!


	4. Garden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Really?" Sakura cocked her head to the side. She found his story hardly believable, it's not like the palace gardens are so vast, that you can't find a tree that has purple flowers on it. "If this is an excuse for you to take advantage of me in a secluded place, I'll have to inform you, that I can pretty much kick your ass." In fact, she wished for him to make a move, so that she would have a reason to hurt him.

The monologue which Ino gave her a few minutes ago left Sakura in such rage, that she felt the urge to break something, _anything._ The only criteria were that it should make a loud noise while being destroyed and it shouldn't be really expensive to replace. Seeing that none of her furniture fit any of the conditions, she left her room in a furious pace in search of an object that could suffer her wrath.

How dares she? How could she possibly expect her to feel lucky or grateful? In her opinion, it was quite easy to sit in a high throne and preach about things, even though the person had no idea about how it felt like to be on the receiving end. Sure, she didn't lose even a distant friend in the war, but she still knew how it felt like losing someone you genuinely cared about. It might not have been in the near past, but the pain still lingered and always made her eyes sting whenever she remembered that day. And the thought of losing her freedom was such a painful blow for her, that it easily rivalled the loss of someone precious to her. That's why she got angered so much by Ino's words, because she of all people should know not to accuse her of not knowing what pain is. Sakura hoped that she won't meet her friend –should she even call her that anymore?- in the near future.

Feeling suddenly out of breath, she stopped in order to rest a bit. Looking around the corridor, she realized that she was currently at the western wing of the palace, where normally the guest rooms were situated, which meant… . Letting out an annoyed sigh, Sakura turned on her heels, desperately trying to leave this part of the building as soon as possible, without having the pleasure of meeting a certain individual. She turned to the left, walking through one of the doors that led to the palace gardens, thinking that she'll have a higher chance in avoiding him there.

The night breeze tickled her bare arms, even though it was the middle of spring, the nights were still quite chilly. Sakura looked around the path she was walking around, admiring the flowers that were still visible in the dim moonlight. The beauty of the royal gardens was widely known throughout the continent, becoming one of the many tourist attractions which her small country could offer. Because of her duties, she had yet to walk around the gardens in this season, but she was sure that the gardeners outdid themselves this time as well. Spring was her favorite season, but not because the tree she got her name from bloomed this time of the year. She liked spring because of the weather, which was not too chilly or hot, but perfectly in between. Not to mention, that all of her beloved flowers blossomed in this period.

Not shortly after she got adopted by Tsunade did she start liking this place. These flowers and trees witnessed the tears she thought would never end. Sakura liked to be here, because no one asked her why she was crying or tried to express their sympathy for her…this silence alone comforted her tremendously. The gardens were her favorite place even after she slowly started recovering. She often spent her time reading outside, the beautiful scenery making even the most boring texts more enjoyable for her.

A small hydrangea shrub caught her attention, squatting down; she ran a finger along the blue petals. She wondered if the palace in Konoha had such kind of a garden as well. That's when it truly hit her: she won't see these flowers ever again; she won't be reading under the trees. The daily routines she had in these past couple of years won't be the same with the ones she'll have in Konoha, even the slightest. Everything will be new and so…so different, nothing will be similar, and this fact alone scared her tremendously.

Sakura started crying before she could stop herself from doing so. The tears just came unstoppably, her sobs becoming more and more audible. She sat down on the graveled pavement, burying her face in her knees, which were brought up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them. At a certain point, her weeps were so frequent, that breathing was starting to get difficult.

She was so angry at herself for crying like this, just because of some stupid flowers out in the open. But no matter how loudly she screamed at herself inside her head to stop, she just couldn't. She hated being like this, acting like a crybaby, especially when anyone could see her. Sakura saw movement from her peripheral vision, making her look in that direction.

"Yo." Kakashi stood only a few steps away from her. Eyes widening, she stood up immediately, showing her back to him. A string of barely audible curses left her lips as she furiously wiped away her tears, hoping that the light was too dim for him to see her red and puffy eyes.

"Good evening, Hatake-san." She said with fake cheeriness after facing him. Sakura looked sideways, too embarrassed to look directly at him. She wanted to run away, because she just didn't have the power to deal with him the way she should, but running would make things worse.

Kakashi wanted to ask her so badly about why she was crying so hard, but then again, he knew a fair amount of reasons why. He knew even before seeing her like this how she felt, but in their previous encounters she was so fierce and confident, that the woman standing before him right now looked like a completely different person. Oh, how much he wished for her to be firing insults at him in this moment than seeing her so depressed. Seeing her vulnerable and in such despair made him feel even guiltier than he had before. He felt like a monster, who took away the happiness of someone else, just because he could.

"What…" Her voice was hoarse. "What are you doing here?"

"Just walking around."

She nodded. "I see. I think I should-"

"I've heard that there's a really beautiful magnolia tree somewhere, but I have yet to find it, could you show it to me?" He blurted out. He would've hit his head in something really hard right then. A few moments ago Genma's words rang in his head about how should he give her the ring, but seeing the not so welcoming aura around her, he contemplated on weather this was the right time to do so.

_'_ _But then again, there won't be a moment when she won't be fuming in my presence.'_ he noted sourly.

"Really?" Sakura cocked her head to the side. She found his story hardly believable, it's not like the palace gardens are so vast, that you can't find a tree that has _purple_ flowers on it. "If this is an excuse for you to take advantage of me in a secluded place, I'll have to inform you, that I can pretty much kick your ass." In fact, she wished for him to make a move, so that she would have a reason to hurt him.

"Don't worry, you are not my type." Kakashi regretted his words even before he spoke them out loud. Here goes his plan on getting in her good graces…

"Guess what, I'm not the kind of a person who likes to date grandpas either." She smiled happily; only the small quivers of the corners of her mouth gave her actual anger away.

_'_ _Well, that hurt.'_ Kakashi concluded. Sure, he was slowly nearing his mid-thirties, but even being called middle aged felt like a great stretch to him, not to mention being considered a pensioner. Was it because of his hair? But at least she was starting to look livelier than a couple of minutes ago, which made him slightly more relaxed.

"I look old because of my hair."

"Of course." Sakura said dismissively, slowly walking towards the east side of the garden.

"Where are you going?"

"Do you want me to show you the tree or not?" She turned around, looking impatient.

"Yes." Kakashi rushed by her side. Well, it seems like his plan might be a success after all…

They walked in complete silence on the graveled path, the small rocks making noise under their feet.

"Thank you for the ball. It means really much to me." Sakura said in a barely audible whisper, her gaze fixed on the ground. Her companion looked at her completely surprised; he didn't expect this from her at all.

"You don't have to…this is the least I could do. Your mother told me how important it is for you."

"Yeah. It will be nice to say a final goodbye to everyone." Her throat became tight and an all too familiar sting started to appear in her eyes. She tried to think about things that could make her angry or to at least change the dangerous path her thoughts started to walk on.

"You know, since our countries made an alliance, the diplomatic relationship between them should be kept. We'll have to send ambassadors once in a while, and I think the head of the envoy should be someone who knows their way around here. Knows the customs, what's acceptable and inexcusable." Kakashi stopped, looking at her intently. "I think you are the perfect candidate for that." He creased his visible eye.

"Do you think so? Could you really do that?" Her emerald eyes shone with hope.

"Of course." The next moment, he felt two arms enveloping him in a tight hug.

"Thank you." Sakura whispered. They stood like this for a few seconds, which was enough time for her to realize what she had just done. She let go instantly, distancing herself from him. "Um…the tree is this way." Sakura fastened her pace, wanting to reach the tree as soon as possible; she stopped only when they were finally standing in front of it.

Kakashi looked up at the tree, which had purple flowers, having a peculiar glow around them. Had it been any other time, he would've admired it's beauty properly.

"Here we are. I hope you know your way back." Sakura started walking back to the palace.

"Wait. Could you just wait a bit?" Raising a brow, she faced him, folding her arms under her chest.

"I hope you don't want to try anything funny." She narrowed her eyes.

"No! Not at all." Kakashi waved his hands in front of him, desperately trying to find the right words. He dug inside his pocket, searching for the box, while walking closer to her. When he was close enough, he opened the box, revealing the ring. It took all of his self-control not to let his hands shake.

"I know that this won't make a big difference in our situation, but I think that it's my duty to give you an engagement ring." The pinkette stared at the jewelry, which slightly twinkled in the moonlight above them. She never was a fan of such kind of accessories, but this one…this one looked so simple, but so gorgeous the same time.

"Can I…slip it on your finger?" Kakashi asked, receiving a nod from her. He pulled the ring out from the box and held her left hand. Her hand was so small and soft, compared to his large, calloused ones. He slipped the ring on her finger; silently giving thanks to the gods above that Sakura's finger wasn't chubbier than his mother's.

"It's really pretty." Sakura whispered. "Thank you."

Kakashi contemplated on telling her that it belonged to his mother, but he felt like this wasn't the right moment to do so. He didn't want to send false messages towards her, because that might not end so well. Sometime maybe he'll tell her, but not now.

That night, Sakura slept more soundly. The thought alone that she'll be seeing the people that were the dearest for her even after being married to Kakashi made her relaxed. Because there will be things which won't change even after leaving her home.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you really much to those who took the time in reading this chapter, hope you liked it! This one is probably the longest so far :3 I really try to make subtle changes in their relationship, the key word being subtle, since they just can't fall in love with each other in the span of a few chapters. I really hope that the slow progress does not annoy anyone :3
> 
> The next chapter will be about the ball and will have more interactions between our favorite characters. Have a nice day everyone!


	5. All The Right Moves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She looked up at her dance partner, jade meeting onyx; his gaze was fixed on her, eyes boring into hers. A small shiver went down her spine, thanks to Kakashi's intent look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry for updating this late, but I'm currently writing research paper for a competition and I practically moved inside the university library in the past few weeks... luckily spring break is here (yaaaaaaay) so I finally had time to finish this piece :D
> 
> Chapter title kindly borrowed from the same song by OneRepublic :)

The following week passed in a blur for Sakura. With her duties at the hospital, dress fittings and whatnot, she was constantly preoccupied, not having even a little alone time for herself. Before all of this, she usually thought over things when she was in bed, too tired to do any work, but not drowsy enough to sleep. But right now, her obligations made her so exhausted, that as soon as her head hit the pillow; she passed out, waking only when her alarm clock shrieked. And boy did she have a lot to think about, like how her attitude should be towards Kakashi.

Her Inner Sakura, an alter ego who would usually represent her true opinion about something, ushered her to beat him up until he was unrecognizable, because he deserved at least this for what he did to her and her country. But then she looked at her engagement ring and her opinion changed. In the Land of Whirlpools, giving such kind of a present to your betrothed wasn't customary. Engagement rings were exchanged between people who genuinely wanted to tie their lives together and not between those who were forced to do so. Instead, what were traded were contracts that held the different obligations of the parties and of course a considerable amount of money as dowry. As far as she knew, the Land of Fire had the same kind of policy. So then why did he give it to her?

Another thing that she didn't understand was that he promised her that she'll have the chance to come back here once in a while, even after their wedding. She was absolutely not prepared for him to have such kind of attitude; it made hating him so much harder. Was this his plan all along? Promising her things that would make her opinion about him change, so that she won't show such resistance? So that it would be easier for him to take her as his? Did Kakashi plan on wooing her completely? Or was this just his way in showing how sorry he was? Was Kakashi a nice person, or the cruelest she has ever met?

The flurry of unanswered questions made Sakura's head hurt. And it was especially annoying, since she had paperwork to do. Groaning, she rested her forehead on the desk.

...

Kakashi fastened the bow tie around his neck, looking himself over in the mirror. He was wearing a white dress shirt with black bow tie and a black tailcoat, black trousers and shoes. His hair was still unruly and he had his mask on, the only elements which remained from his casual attire. He started fidgeting, oh, how much he hated these formal things. But since he hated problems, he didn't have any other way than to choose the lesser evil out of the two. Because, it would be quite scandalous if the king would show up in a shirt and jeans on his engagement ball.

"It's almost time to go." He noted to no one particularly after looking at his pocket watch. Although he usually was late from every appointment, he tried not to be this time. Looking over himself one more time in the mirror, he left the room.

"You are finally here! I was considering on dragging you here personally." Genma glared at him in front of the door that led to the ballroom. He was wearing the formal military uniform, looking particularly smug in them.

"But I'm on time."

"Like hell you are. You are more than half an hour late!" Kakashi dangled his pocket watch in front of his friend's face, trying to prove that he was right. Genma raised a brow. "Your watch does not work." His friend pointed at the clock which was on the wall, showing that he was indeed late.

"Well…the thought is what counts." Kakashi scratched the back of his neck.

"Please explain that to a really furious queen and princess. Kurenai, please tell the others, that we can start." The woman nodded, disappearing behind one of the doors.

Kakashi walked closer to the ballroom's door, preparing to leave.

"By the way, she looks gorgeous." Genma whispered, having a smug look on his face.

The sound of trumps could be heard from the other side of the door.

"Please welcome His Royal Majesty, King Hatake Kakashi of the Land of Fire and Her Royal Highness, Princess Senju Sakura of the Land of Whirlpools." One of the servants boomed, the double winged door in front of Kakashi opening. He stepped out; his gaze fixed forward, his breath caught.

Sakura was in front of him, entering the room through another gate. She had a confident look on her face, head held high. Her hair was held in a bun with an intricate hairclip, which resembled a bloomed branch. The top part of her dress looked like the upper side of a furisode, with the sleeves reaching her knees, while the bottom part was an A-line skirt, its end brushing the floor. The whole dress was painted by hand, having vines and different shaped flowers on it. She looked…astonishing.

Her gaze didn't falter even a bit as they walked closer to each other. Sakura raising her right hand delicately, so he could hold it. They started walking down on the marble stairs, which led to the dance floor. Sakura had to be really careful not to stumble and fall down, the long dress making it especially hard for her to see where she was stepping.

"It's so nice of you to show up." Sakura muttered, barely audibly.

"Ah, you see, my watch didn't work properly."

"Of course." Her voice didn't hold even a bit of sympathy.

It was only when they were at the bottom of the stairs did Sakura observe her surroundings. People stood around the dance floor, there was so many of them, that they looked like a mass of black and each and every color of the rainbow. She was sure that there were only a handful of people whom she actually knew, the majority of the guests being diplomats from the Land of Fire and other nobles. She felt uncomfortable, the thought that most of them wouldn't even know her name, had it not been for the invitation cards aggravated her. And to think that there will be even more of these people on their wedding…

They stopped in the middle, Kakashi letting go of her hand. He walked a few steps ahead of her, asking her for a dance with a bow. She curtseyed, putting her hand in his larger one once again. Kakashi rested his left hand on the small of her back, while his fiancée put her hand on his shoulder blade. They felt everyone's gaze on themselves, their silence becoming suffocating. Slowly, the orchestra started playing, the melody filling the enormous ballroom.

The two of them moved to the music in an elegant waltz. Kakashi guided Sakura around the dance floor with such ease that it surprised her, she thought that he'll be clumsy and step on her feet or something. She hated dancing ever since she started living in the royal palace. The monthly organized balls aggravated her, because she always had to attend and act nicely towards people who had low opinions of her. The worst part was that each and every snotty noble brat asked her to dance, and she _had_ to accept their request. Either that or suffer from Tsunade's wrath, as it would be considered downright rude for the princess to refuse someone. Even if the majority of them _couldn't_ dance. Their palms were sweaty, couldn't lead her properly, stepped on her toes and their hands sometimes wandered far too close to her bottom. Yes, her experience with dance partners was awful to say the least.

Though it was hard for her to admit it, she was pleasantly surprised by Kakashi. She was dreading this exact moment since morning, her toes already hurting from the mere thought of the opening dance. She didn't think that Kakashi could dance, since he was far too laid back to be able to. His posture was anything but lazy and he held her firmly against him, he made her feel delicate and not like a piece of meat that had to be flung from one side of the room to the other. This was _pleasant_.

She looked up at her dance partner, jade meeting onyx; his gaze was fixed on her, eyes boring into hers. A small shiver went down her spine, thanks to Kakashi's intent look. She started wondering about what kind of expression he had on his face, since the mask was obscuring most of his features. It really annoyed her to no extent. She heard anecdotes about why he wore that piece of fabric so persistently. Some said that he had jagged teeth, with which he ripped out his victim's throat and he never bothered to brush his teeth, so the remnants of blood and tissue always covered them. Sakura refused to believe this particular rumor; it was downright outrageous and was obviously drenched with the animosity of her people towards him. Her theory was more believable in her opinion: he had some kind of physical deformity which he wanted to hide in order to save his dignity in front of others. Besides, he wasn't a prince charming kind of guy, so it completely made sense that he wasn't alluring.

"You are awfully quiet." Kakashi stated.

"Oh…does it bother you?" Sakura raised a brow.

"Not really, at least I'm not verbally abused by you." His lone eye crinkled happily, earning a snort from his dance partner.

"You know, I could _accidentally_ step on your toes with my heels right now." She fluttered her lashes at him lovingly.

"Ah, you always threaten me." The man's dramatic sigh made her roll her eyes.

Their dance was slowly coming to a close, making Sakura relieved but anxious at the same time. She wished that the dance wouldn't end, not because of her partner, but because she'll have to talk to the herd of guests about things she could care less about.

"You look particularly stunning tonight." Kakashi murmured, bending her backwards as the music started to fade away. The pinkette felt her cheeks burning, something that did not stop even after they left the dance floor.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that it ends really abruptly, but the chapter would've been far too long if I had left the remaining parts in.
> 
> Thank you really much for reading! Thank you for the kudos :)


	6. Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For a second, a really brief second, she almost let herself say yes. But then her consciousness kicked in, she shouldn't and wouldn't share such a meaningful memory with someone like him. He might have stolen her freedom, but he sure as hell won't take away her memories as well.

Sakura walked with Kakashi around the room, her arm hooked around his. They stopped once in a while to talk to some important people about whom she could care less about. She smiled at them and laughed at their lame jokes. You'd think that one could get used to such kind of events, but not Sakura.

She stared absentmindedly at one of the flower arrangements next to a pillar, while Kakashi was having a conversation with a military official. The night was progressing in a painfully slow pace.

Sakura never understood the reason why Tsunade held these events, since the blonde hated such kind of formal parties as well. When a teenaged Sakura asked her surrogate mother about this, the reply she gave surprised her to say the least. Tsunade wanted to observe the nobles. She wanted to see who belonged to which clique, and also to be aware of the latest gossips, which always had some truth at their bases. Knowing who liked or hated who made it easier for her to plan her political moves.

"It was an honor talking to you, Your Majesty." the man said, bowing. Kakashi sighed deeply, when his previous conversation partner was outside of earshot.

"I'm seriously going to jump out of the window if this continues on." He mumbled, earning a snort from his fiancée.

She thought that it was ironic, how he was suffering so much even though he was the one who brought it all upon himself. The sadist inside of her even enjoyed his misery, it made the night a bit more bearable.

"I see you enjoy my misery."

"Why do you think so?" Sakura raised a delicate brow, faking utter confusion.

"Because you were smiling a moment ago."

"Of course, at least there's something enjoyable in this night."

"Sadist." He noted lightly.

"Oh, stop showering me with such endearing words, I might melt." Her tone was dry.

"It's not like your threat of poisoning me didn't make my heart flutter."

Sakura looked incredulously at him. "It still bothers you?"

"Yes." Kakashi huffed.

"Good." A complacent smile graced her pink lips, annoying the man in front of her.

"Shouldn't you at least _try_ to seem sorry?" The silver haired man's visible eye narrowed.

"My parents taught me that I shouldn't feel sorry for something I did purposely."

"They should've taught you otherwise."

The hurt look on her face was only present for a few seconds, but it was long enough for Kakashi to notice. That's when he realized the mistake he made. He wasn't aware of the details, but he did know that her parents died when she was still a child. Being someone who lost their family, he knew how painful it was when people even mentioned them. He really wanted to kick himself right now. _Really_.

"I'm-"

"You are what?" She interrupted him immediately, with an unreadable expression. It was impossible for him to decipher her countenance, so finding the right answer was hard.

"I shouldn't have brought up your family." He mumbled, not looking at her.

"Considering our predicament, I think this was the least upsetting thing that you caused." The silence that followed after was uncomfortable for both of them. The pinkette looked at the dance floor, when a familiar tune started to play; it was a song which was only known in Whirlpool. This was probably her favorite song when she was a child as well the dance which belonged to it. She always asked her father to dance with her when the orchestra played the tune. Her mother once even told her, that her father hated such kind of activities, but he just couldn't refuse Sakura's request. It's been _years_ since she last danced to it, mostly because the melody which previously brought joy to her now only stirred bad memories.

"Would you like to dance?"

Sakura looked at Kakashi surprised. "No…not really…it's just…never mind."

For a second, a really brief second, she almost let herself say yes. But then her consciousness kicked in, she shouldn't and wouldn't share such a meaningful memory with someone like him. He might have stolen her freedom, but he sure as hell won't take away her memories as well.

Kakashi didn't have to be a rocket scientist to see behind her lie. She _wanted_ to dance. The longing in her eyes spoke volumes, but so did her refusal. She didn't want to dance with _him_. It was a simple thing, really and it shouldn't have bothered him that much. Yet it did. It wasn't like her refusal hurt his male pride, but it hurt his hope in having a somewhat amicable relationship. Their previous dancing was something they had to do, and not something they wanted to. He could only hope that the tables would turn sometime in the future.

The rest of the night preceded the same way, with diplomats and other important people congratulating them. She felt relieved when the ball finally ended, the guests leaving one by one. Her tired feet guided her towards her room, the distance between the two rooms seeming immense. It took her only a few steps to realize that she wasn't alone.

"Your room is at the other side of the palace." She said, not even glancing at him.

"I just wanted to have a walk." Her eyes narrowed at his words.

"How about you try another excuse? Something that's more believable."

"Sightseeing?" Kakashi crinkled his eye.

"Really?"

"Are you annoyed that I'm following you?"

"Would you leave me alone if I say yes?"

"Maybe."

She knew that he wouldn't keep his word, but she tried nonetheless. Sakura stopped in front of him, folding her arms under her chest. "You are annoying me, so don't follow me."

"Okay." Shrugging, he turned around already walking towards the opposite wing of the building. "But before I leave…can you answer a question?"

"What?"

"What was the name of that song?"

"It does not have a name; it's so ancient that no one remembers."

"I see."

With that, he left a confused Sakura behind.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm soooooooooooooooo sorry for such a late update, but I got really busy with university stuff, so I didn't have the time or the energy to put up a new chapter. I'm not really proud of this chapter...it didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. Next chapter will have Sakura's travel to the Fire Country :)
> 
> Anyways, thank you for reading, commenting and for the kudos :)


	7. Moving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The station was decorated with flowers and garlands, all prepared for the greeting of the king and his fiancée. People cheered when they saw Kakashi. Sakura found it strange, even weird, that the public looked so ecstatic in his presence. But then again, it made sense: they were his people, they liked even loved him, because he was a capable ruler. He defeated the enemy, expanding the influence of the country. Hell, she was the living proof of his success in doing so.

The port of Uzushiogakure was unusually crowded. People from all around the capital came here, to say farewell to their beloved princess. Royal guards lined the dock that led to the ship, which would eventually take the couple back to the continent. The sun was shining brightly, not even one cloud on the sky. There wasn’t even a single ship on the sea as far as the eye could look, the navy making sure that nothing endangered the life of the royal pair. Soon, the crowd became impatient, their chattering becoming louder, filled with complaints. The convoy should have been here almost an hour ago, but there was still no sign of them.

 

Sakura sat inside a black car with tinted windows, looking outside. She tried to memorize each and every building that lined the road leading to the port, some of them awakening almost forgotten memories. She saw the small bakery that sold the best pastry in town, the bookshop with those embarrassingly sappy romance novels, the Yamanaka flower shop. Her heart started aching when she remembered Ino. They didn’t talk ever since their little argument a few weeks ago, it was mostly because they were both extremely busy, but – at least on her part- also because she was mad after the speech the blonde gave her. But now, with the moment of her departure coming closer and closer with each passing second, she regretted her actions. When would she see her best friend again? It might be months, even years. She didn’t even know if any of her friends would attend the wedding, since not everyone got invited.

 

Her stomach started churning when she saw the port; the white ship was waiting for them as well as a huge crowd of people. The car stopped in front of the dock, a servant opening the door on Kakashi’s side. He climbed out and extended a hand in order to help her, which she accepted, even though she didn’t really want to. The crowd started cheering when she stepped out, almost all of them chanting her name. Their kindness caused her to smile and wave at them.

 

The tightness in her chest returned in full force while they boarded the ship, each step being harder and harder for her.

 

“Your Highness, Your Majesty.” The captain, a middle aged man greeted them instantly.

 

“Is everything all right with the ship, captain?” Kakashi asked.

 

“Of course, Your Majesty. The weather looks to be in our favor, we’ll reach the continent in about one and a half hour.”

 

“Good.”

 

“One of my crew members will show you your cabins.”

 

Sakura was glad that they’ll get a separate cabin; at least she’ll have a place where she can cry, and then collect herself before anyone could see how distraught she was. The cabins were situated at the backside of the ship, completely isolated from the corridors the crew members used.

 

She locked herself inside the cabin as soon as the sailor opened it for her. The cabin was spacious, the only sign that it was situated inside a ship being the huge windows overlooking the sea. The pinkette sat down on the bed that was facing the window. She replayed in her head the discussion she had with Tsunade this morning, embedding each and every word of wisdom the older woman shared with her.

 

_“There are going to be people who won’t like you. Not just because you are from Whirlpool, but because of your…family situation as well.”_

_“So the reason they’ll hate me is because I’m your adopted daughter?” Sakura wrinkled her forehead._

_“Yes.” This earned a snort from the younger woman._

_“Then they shouldn’t have agreed on me marrying their precious king. Anything else?”_

_“Be careful with the council, try not to anger them. I’m not telling you that you should become their drinking buddy, just be on their good side.”_

_“And what if not?”_

_“They’ll make your life a living hell.” Tsunade stated bluntly._

_“Wonderful. I just can’t wait to meet them.” Her voice was dripping with sarcasm._

_“Kakashi can help you a great deal with court life in Konoha, just ask him.”_

_“Really?” Sakura didn’t try to hide her skepticism._

_“He might not be your ideal candidate for a husband-”_

_“Damn right.” The blonde rolled her eyes._

_“-but he’s someone whom you can trust.”_

_“And how did you reach to this conclusion?”_

_Tsunade pointed at her hand “It’s because of that ring. There was a reason to why he gave it to you.”_

_“Of course.” The pinkette threw her hands in the air. “He wants to get on my good side.”_

_“Yes. But not because he has ill intentions. He…I think he genuinely feels sorry for this whole ordeal. He didn’t act aggressively during the meetings in fact, Danzo was the one who acted like that.”_

 

Sakura flopped backwards on the bed, staring at the white ceiling. Tsunade told her to trust him, but it wasn’t that easy for her. After everything she witnessed during her time at the palace in Uzushiogakure, trusting people became really hard for her. Her relationship with individuals changed drastically after she became adopted by Tsunade. They either wanted to take advantage of her position or her money. She became tired of always becoming disappointed, that’s why she was so hostile towards new people.

 

She felt a nudge from underneath her, she sat up instantly. Her heart sunk when she saw the port becoming farther and farther from where she was sitting. The ship has started moving. Moving towards Fire Country and leaving her homeland behind. Sakura stared out the window, looking at the island that became smaller with each second. Her hands grabbed the sheets underneath her, knuckles whitening. She suddenly felt so small; there wasn’t a single person on this ship about whom she cared about. All her loved ones were left behind and she won’t see them until the wedding, if ever. The only thing that waited for her in her new home…no, she couldn’t call it her home. Home was where you longed to return, where someone was waiting for you. It was the place which you didn’t want to leave.

 

The only thing that waited for her in her new _residence_ was a husband she didn’t love, inimical council members, and long days of doing nothing. Because who was she to kid, they didn’t trust her enough to let her meddle with anything.

 

The ship arrived to a port on the coast of Fire Country earlier than they expected. They continued their journey to Konohagakure via train. Since there weren’t such great distances in her homeland, it didn’t have a railroad system. Sakura chastised herself for feeling excited about trying out this new means of transportation.

 

Fire Country’s geography was a lot more different than her birthplace’s. Vast expanses of forest covered the land, so thick that the rays of the sun hardly permeated the ground. She missed the taste of salt in the air and the crying of seagulls.

 

After a three hour long journey, the train finally reached the capital. The station was decorated with flowers and garlands, all prepared for the greeting of the king and his fiancée. People cheered when they saw Kakashi. Sakura found it strange, even weird, that the public looked so ecstatic in his presence. But then again, it made sense: they were his people, they liked even _loved_ him, because he was a capable ruler. He defeated the enemy, expanding the influence of the country. Hell, she was the living proof of his success in doing so.  

 

The royal palace seemed to be bigger and fancier than Uzushiogakure’s. It was surrounded by trees of all kinds and heights, giving the illusion that it was a part of the forest. Their car came to a halt just in front of the grand entrance, two elderly people waiting for them. Kakashi helped her out from the car once again.

 

“Homura-san, Koharu-san.” Kakashi bowed, the pinkette following suit.

 

Hearing their names, the pinkette instantly recognized them. These two were the ones who dominated the politics of the Land of Fire even before Tsunade became queen in her country. Rumors say that they often had more say in the realm’s matters than the king himself.

 

“It’s nice to finally see you, Hatake-san.” Koharu waved a fan in front of her face delicately.

 

“Ah…I hope that everything went well during my absence.” Kakashi crinkled his visible eye.

 

“Of course.” The older woman said, with a hint of indignation in her voice, like the mere fact of Kakashi thinking that she is not capable is outrageous. Her otherwise squinting eyes opened as she shifted her gaze onto Sakura.

 

“So you are the infamous Haruno Sakura.” She gave the younger woman a measuring look.

 

“You are mistaken.” Kakashi spoke up. “Her name is Senju Sakura.”

 

“That doesn’t change the fact that she’s a Haruno. She might have been adopted, but her blood will be always different.” Sakura tried to keep her stoic expression in check. Tsunade was right; these people won’t like her at all.

 

“It’s a nice thing that blood has nothing to do with a person’s capability.” Kakashi said cheerily, ignoring the hard look the two elders gave him. “Now, I believe I should show my fiancée her room.” He pulled at Sakura’s hand gently,

 

Sakura looked incredulously at his back. Did he just defend her in front of those two? Koharu’s jab at her family origins hurt her, but she was prepared for such a move. So Kakashi’s words were really unexpected for her…it kind of made Sakura happy that he took her side.

 

“You’ll be staying at one of the guest rooms until the wedding.” Kakashi said while they were walking.

 

“Oh.”

 

“Of course, after the ceremony, you’ll have a new room…which is closer to mine.” He must have seen her nervousness, because he soon continued. “Don’t worry, we’ll have separate rooms.”

 

“Wouldn’t there be an opposition on the elder’s side because of that?”

 

“Yes. But as the king, the final word is mine. I won’t let them force us into things we don’t want.” His reassurance made her a bit calmer.

 

Kakashi stopped in front of a huge door. “This is your room. If you need anything else, just tell the maid.”

 

“Thank you.” She whispered.

 

Even though this wasn’t the first time she voiced her gratitude towards him, it still caught him off guard.

 

“Thank you for standing up for me.” Sakura stared at the marble floor.

 

“Koharu shouldn’t have taken such petty remarks. Besides, you shouldn’t thank me for something like this.”

 

“But-”

 

“You don’t have to.” She could see that his smile was genuine, even though the mask obscured his face.

 

* * *

 

Her room was enormous. The furniture was tasteful and looked really expensive, but because of the room’s size, everything was so far away. Her luggage was already inside, the huge chests waiting to be unpacked. She contemplated on whether she should empty them, or not. Unpacking would mean that she settled in, that she really left home. Maybe she’ll never unpack…no one besides the servants would notice that. Besides, if someone would ask her about why she didn’t unpack, her answer will be that it’s pointless to do so until she moves into her new room. And after that…well, she’ll think about that when the time comes.

 

Sakura walked to the windows that overlooked the vast cityscape. It was strange how the deep blue sea wasn’t visible from here; there were trees instead, as far as she could see. She’ll never get used to this large expanse of green, or to the large buildings instead of the small cottages. Sighing, she closed the curtains, ridding herself of the painful scenery.

 

After such a long day, the bed seemed really inviting; Sakura was tired both physically and emotionally. The pinkette pulled her nightgown out from one of the trunks, preparing to go to sleep. She started to dread the following day, despite the fact that she had no idea about what awaited her.

 

  

 


	8. The Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura didn't want to be seen as a weakling, someone who couldn't take on challenges. She knew the reason why these old people gave her such a hard time. They wanted to test her, to see if she's good enough. Well, she'll show them how damn good she is. Running instantly to Kakashi for help won't improve her situation at all. It might not have been her choice to become queen, but she sure as hell wants the respect she deserves from everyone.

With the royal wedding being only a month away, everyone was crazy. Even though the preparations started immediately after their engagement was announced, the tasks the organizers needed to complete didn't diminish even now. If Sakura thought that they were going overboard with the preparations for the engagement ball, then what they were doing now was plain ridiculous. Of course since Kakashi was the king of such an influential country, the need to show off was bigger than ever.

At least Sakura didn't have to worry about becoming bored during the free time she had between two dress fittings. All thanks to the council. Since she will be the queen of the Land of Fire, she had to know the nation's culture and history by heart. Her lessons began the day after she arrived. Her teacher, Sarutobi Kurenai was one of the few people that she liked in the palace. She didn't judge her because of her family or country, which was refreshing after her daily confrontations with the council members.

Sakura was currently sitting inside the library, reading a book, which was so thick and heavy, that she had to carry it with both of her hands. It contained Fire Country's history from the early times up until now. She was educated in the history of all the Five Great Nations but not to the degree of a know it all.

The words in the book were written so nicely, that it took her a few pages of reading to get used to them. She observed with childish glee the illustrations in it, noticing and appreciating every detail they had.

In the beginning, several tribes lived across the territory of the Land of Fire. The initial peace between them got disrupted, each leader wanting to gain absolute power. The Uchihas and the Senjus were the most powerful ones, so it was no surprise that the weaker tribes united under their lead. Initially they wanted to divide the land between the two groupings, but this was not in the favor of many. It was decided that a battle between Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama, both leaders of their respective clans would decide the fate of the land. Their battle took place at the Valley of the End, a place so legendary that two statues were erected in the honor of the two opponents.

They fought for three days and nights without stopping, there wasn't even one onlooker who watched the battle from beginning to end, since they all fell asleep eventually. The two rivals moved so fast, that only blurs could be seen to normal people, their swords clashed with such ferocity, that they emitted sparks. The aftershock of one of their clashes was so great, that water penetrated the surface of the earth, tumbling down from the edge of the cliff and forming a waterfall. Both of them were equally strong; it was evident that the victor would be the one who had more stamina. Eventually, Madara gained the upper hand and defeated his enemy.

Hashirama and his followers sought refuge on the Land of Whirlpools, which was governed by the Uzumaki. To seal their alliance he married Mito, the daughter of Uzumaki Ashina, the island's lord. The couple was well-known; an epitome of what true love should look like. Even though their marriage was an arranged one, they loved and cherished each other passionately. It wasn't the kind of love between two friends...it was a true kind, one which could move mountains and defeat any enemy. Mito helped her husband in building a modern country, and always stood by his side. When her mother told these stories to a young Sakura, the little girl wanted nothing more than to have such a love story as well. To have her prince charming one day and live happily ever after.

The Uchiha clan became the royal family of the newly established Land of Fire, and so an age of prosperity and peace started with the reign of Madara. It all stopped, when Setsuna became the new king, after his uncle passed away. He started an aggressive foreign policy, threatening the surrounding countries with an invasion. Up until that time, the Land of Whirlpools had a neutral relationship with Fire Country, but this soon changed. Setsuna had the desire of occupying the island, claiming that it belonged to his country in the first place. The Land of Water, an ally of the small island threatened to intervene if the Uchihas invaded. Decades passed with the tension in the region never really subsiding.

Meanwhile the Land of Fire tried to gain as many allies as possible, but they rarely succeeded in doing so. Their kings were arrogant, aggressive and stubborn. The kings of the region wanted to form the alliance by marriage, as a guarantee that the loyalty of the Uchihas won't disappear. The only problem was that the latter one didn't want it. It was often said that it was easier to conquer a nation than to marry into the Uchiha clan. The Uchihas valued the purity if their lineage more than anything. Cousins married each other, nieces and uncles, aunts and nephews tied their lives together, all in the means of keeping the bloodline pure.

Sakura stopped turning the pages when a portrait of the last Uchiha king and his family came up. Fugaku Uchiha looked like any member of his clan, with his dark hair and onyx colored eyes. The stern look on his face made the lines under his eyes very prominent. He was sitting on a golden chair, wearing a deep blue kimono with rich embroidery. Fugaku held a golden fan in his right hand, symbolizing his family's crest. His wife, Mikoto was standing next to his sitting form, with her hand resting on his right shoulder. The dark haired woman radiated with kindness. Their two sons, Sasuke and Itachi stood at their parents' side. While Itachi had a frown on his face, his younger sibling was smiling. Both boys were handsome, too bad that one was a psychopath and the other disinterested in everything but revenge.

Five years ago Itachi massacred the whole clan, except for his little brother, who somehow managed to escape. No one knows the reason why he did so even now. Sasuke left the country, desperately searching for his brother in order to revenge the death of his family. Since he didn't have any interests in ruling, he renounced his title, leaving the country without a leader.

The clans started battling with each other, each one trying to win. Chaos engulfed the whole country, villages were burnt down or robbed, and thousands of innocent lives were taken. It was evident of the Council by that time that the new leader shouldn't belong to any of the currently battling clans. Having a king who was responsible for the perish of his own people would be unacceptable. With the nobles out of the question, there was hardly anyone left to choose from.

The fights continued on, the Council sending the royal army to stop them. Their leader, Hatake Kakashi was able to stop further civilian bloodshed. With the battles soon coming to a close, it became more and more evident that the people wanted Kakashi as their king. His courageousness and kindness earned people's love. They saw a hero in him, the person who saved them from death and tragedy.

The Council though was reluctant. Once the Hatake clan was an influential family. Their heads were always the most successful military men, often becoming marshals. But as time passed, they became a middle class clan, though they still held power in the army. Because of a series of events, the Hatake clan had only one member left alive: Kakashi. He was still unmarried and didn't have any offspring, though he was still young enough to have a family in the future. The Council was afraid that if he dies without an heir, the struggle of the other clans for power would start yet again. But then again, if they chose a ruler that the people didn't want, a civil war would break out. In the end they chose the lesser of the two evils.

Thus began the reign of Hatake Kakashi, who got crowned five years ago, becoming the first king of the Land of Fire, who wasn't an Uchiha. He rebuilt the villages which were destroyed because of the war. He gave social aid to those families who lost their bread winner and founded orphanages for children. His diplomats visited the surrounding countries in order to establish new relations.

Kakashi proved himself to be an excellent ruler. He was caring and intelligent. He wasn't the leader who only represented the wishes of the nobles, but the whole countries. Some even said that the kingdom didn't have such a great king since Madara.

Sakura read the pages of praises about Kakashi with a frown on her face. Too bad that these people didn't know about him attacking a country out of the blue, and forcing an innocent woman to marry him. The court historiographers were a little bit blind… Sighing, she closed the book, preparing to leave the library.

She was about to head out, when she saw Kakashi sitting in one of the plush armchairs. He was reading a book with an orange cover, completely oblivious to her presence. Sakura hoped that s he'll be able to exit the room without him noticing, since she wasn't in the mood to talk to him. Though to be honest, she was _never_ in the mood to deal with him.

"Hello there." She heard him say, though the book still hid his face from her.

"Oh, hi…I didn't even see you there."

"I'm sure." Kakashi still had his gaze on the book, turning a page.

They stood in silence after that, both of them feeling really uncomfortable, at least Sakura did. The pink haired woman's eyes narrowed when she saw the all too familiar orange cover of the book Kakashi was holding. For a split second she gave the benefit of doubt, after all, there were hundreds of books that had orange covers. Like, she could certainly enumerate a dozen instantly…

Or maybe not.

"Is that Icha Icha Paradise?" She asked, with a hint of doubt in her voice.

Kakashi furrowed his brows, her question completely catching him off guard. She was probably the first woman he knew that recognized the book. "Yes. How did you know?"

"It's because the author, Jiraiya-san is a…" She paused, searching for an adequate word. "a family friend."

"You know him?" He started sitting more upright in the armchair, clearly showing his interest.

"Yeah…he actually used me and one of my friends to write the sequel. You know, women really like children, and he took us with him whenever he wanted to pick up a girl." She chuckled. "Tsunade would get sooo furious when she found out."

Her eyes twinkled with fondness when she recalled that memory. This was probably the first time he saw her so pleased in his presence. It somehow gave him hope, that maybe…maybe in the near future their relationship would become happier.

"You know, he might come to the wedding. Jiraiya-san."

"What?"

"I invited him, since he's an important person for me. Though, he might not come, since he's really busy…and he's constantly travelling." Sakura stared at the carpet, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the attention he gave her.

"I see…And what were you doing here?"

"I've been reading the history of the kingdom. The Council is really adamant about me learning everything that's connected to this country."

"If they are being difficult or insulting you, tell me." Kakashi closed his book.

' _They_ are _being difficult.'_ She thought, but she didn't voice out her opinion. Sakura didn't want to be seen as a weakling, someone who couldn't take on challenges. She knew the reason why these old people gave her such a hard time. They wanted to test her, to see if she's good enough. Well, she'll show them how damn good she is. Running instantly to Kakashi for help won't improve her situation at all. It might not have been her choice to become queen, but she sure as hell wants the respect she deserves from everyone.

"Thank you…" She cracked a small smile.

Kakashi stood up from his seat, walking to a nearby bookshelf.

"You know, those history books you must have read are really boring." He ran his fingers along the spines of several books, clearly searching for one. "But there's one that's quite interesting, even exciting…but where did I put it? Oh, here it is!" He pulled out a maroon book, heading towards where she was standing.

"It might not always be historically accurate, but it's a fairly good read." He handed it over to her, his eye crinkled.

"Thanks." She nodded, smiling back at him.

"Now, if you don't mind, I have to go to some kind of meeting, before they send someone after me." He said, not so cheerily. "Bye." She heard him say before closing the door.

Sakura looked at the book in her hands once again. "Kaguya's Tears." She read the title out loud. With curiosity getting the better of her, she occupied Kakashi's previous seat, opening the book.

* * *


	9. Long Time No See

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, Sakura wasn't that different as a child. She thought that the prince and princess fell in love before they got wed. And that the princess's opinion was counted, that she wasn't forced to leave her home behind. Unfortunately it turned out that fairy tales were just that, tales. Just a faction of truth with lies filling out the parts that were omitted, since they were far too cruel for people to handle.

The ever busy Konoha was even more chaotic in the week before the wedding. Hundreds of foreign guests flooded the capital, some of them renting out villas or suites in the most expensive hotels the city could offer. The citizens were really enthusiastic as well. The details of the wedding were a constant topic between them. It was no wonder though; the last royal wedding was between Fugaku and Mikoto almost thirty years ago.

It was Sakura's and Kakashi's duty to greet each and every guest, as a form of gratitude that they'll attend the wedding ceremony. They were both annoyed by this ridiculous custom, but the Council was adamant on following each and every step of protocol.

Sakura was in the middle of organizing a few things in her room, when one of the servants told her that two new guests arrived and were currently waiting for her in the hall. Muttering illegible curses under her breath, she headed towards the hall, which was oh so inconveniently at the other side of the palace. To her surprise, Kakashi was already waiting for her at the stairs.

"Oh, how come you are so early?" She asked with a smirk, pretending to be overly surprised.

"Ha ha ha." He narrowed his one visible eye.

"You were nearby when the servant told you, huh?"

"That might be the case." Kakashi mumbled. He extended his hand, grabbing hers when she was close enough. They were starting to getting used to holding hands like this, in such kind of situations. It most definitely wasn't a romantic act or anything. Neither felt electricity surging through their veins at the moment of contact. Though, they didn't feel uncomfortable while doing so either. They had to hold hand so frequently, that the sensation of discomfort was long forgotten.

They went down the marble stairs, their guests slowly coming into view. Sakura's breath hitched at their sight.

This wasn't real. It couldn't be.

 _He_ was here.

Uzumaki Naruto was standing only a few feet away from her, with that trademark grin plastered on his face.

This was bad. So bad.

A barrage of thoughts flooded her entire being. One of the most dominant ones were those that wanted to kick Naruto out of the palace as soon as possible. The only reason why she sent him the invitation was because of their common past. To be honest, he was probably the last person she wanted to attend her wedding. It wasn't like she hated him or something.

In the invitation and letter she sent him, Sakura _accidentally_ forgot to mention the fact that her engagement and marriage was an arranged one. Knowing Naruto, he would blow up at the news, and probably cause a scene, which could pretty much worsen her already dire situation. So yes, ignorance is bliss.

Not to mention that…that he…that both of them had certain unfinished matters. Matters that made her feeling nauseous whenever she got reminded of them. So yes, she felt like throwing up right now. Sweet.

Kakashi took a side glance at his fiancée. She was nervous…if her pale complex and the iron grip she had his hand in was enough proof. He started wondering about what kind of connection she had to the two visitors.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto started running towards Sakura as soon as she finished climbing down the stairs. He quickly enveloped her in a tight hug, knocking out the wind from her lungs.

"I'm glad to see you too, Naruto." She wheezed, patting his back.

"I came as soon as I heard about the news!" To her relief, his embrace loosened.

"Took you long enough." Sakura laughed.

"It's not my fault…Ero-senning had to stop at almost all of the bathhouses we came across." The blonde pointed at the white haired man at his back.

"Hey, an old man like me has to rest his aching joints once in a while."

"Of course." Naruto muttered.

"Jiraiya-san!" Sakura walked towards the older man with a smile.

"Hello there Sakura-chan." He smiled at her warmly. He grabbed her hand and kissed it tenderly. "You've grown into a really beautiful woman. Tsunade had a really good influence on you." This earned a chuckle from Sakura.

Leave it to Jiraiya to throw compliments right after greeting someone from the opposite sex. The man just _loved_ to flirt

"Please forgive the behavior of my godson; he was born with the manners of a caveman." Jiraiya said to Kakashi, bowing.

"Hey, Ero-sennin!"

"I'm Jiraiya and he's Uzumaki Naruto."

Sakura snickered at Kakashi's shocked face after finding out that his favorite author was in the same room as him.

"I'm a big fan of your work, Jiraiya-san." Kakashi shook the older man's hand with much enthusiasm.

"It's an honor, Your Majesty."

"Have you decided yet about where will you stay in the following days?" Kakashi asked.

"We are planning on renting a room somewhere."

"Nonsense! We have plenty of empty guest rooms, you should stay here." The king stated.

"Oh, Your Majesty, you are far too kind."

"You are Sakura's close friends, so it's evident that you'll stay here. I'll tell the servants immediately to prepare your rooms." Kakashi was already walking down one of the corridors, searching for a servant.

"We were really surprised about the news, Sakura-chan." Naruto stated after some silence.

"Oh, really?" Sakura was as tense as a board.

"Yes." Naruto scratched the back of his neck with a bandaged hand.

"Your hand. What happened?" Sakura asked, with unmasked worry in her voice.

"Oh…I went a little bit overboard with training. It's nothing serious though."

Green eyes narrowed at his words. "That's what you said after breaking your arm. You might have gotten taller and older, but you didn't change even a bit." She shook her head with a knowing smile. "Come on, I'll treat it properly." She dragged him towards the infirmary.

* * *

 

This was bad…no, bad wasn't the right word to express the direness of her situation. Disastrous was a more fitting word. Yes, she'll settle on disastrous.

Sakura almost fainted when Kakashi told Naruto and Jiraiya to stay here.

Uzumaki Naruto, the man who didn't know the full details of her marriage was living in the palace. In the palace, where everyone knew about the real reason of her engagement. The common people, who lived outside of court politics didn't have the slightest idea about the truth. They still thought that Kakashi and her got engaged out of love, because they _wanted_ to tie their lives together. Commoners still lived in the belief that everything that happened in court was because of true feelings and not because of contracts and agreements.

Well, Sakura wasn't that different as a child. She thought that the prince and princess fell in love _before_ they got wed. And that the princess's opinion was counted, that she wasn't forced to leave her home behind. Unfortunately it turned out that fairytales were just that, tales. Just a faction of truth with lies filling out the parts that were omitted, since they were far too cruel for people to handle.

She sat up abruptly on her bed after commotion broke out at the other side of her door. The faint voice of two people arguing could be heard. Furrowing her brows, the pinkette walked towards the door. Just when she was about to wrap her fingers around the ledge, the entrance opened, almost smashing her face.

"What the-!" She exclaimed, preparing to reprimand the person responsible. Like honestly, the wedding was less than a week away and she was absolutely not in the mood to get plastic surgery done. Her words got caught in her throat at the sight of the person standing in front of her. It seems like today was the day of absolute surprises.

"Ino?" Sakura whispered.

"Hey there Forehead." The blonde chuckled.

Ino and her were calling each other names since they were little. Though, in the beginning they weren't words of endearment, but those of insult. It all began when they both fell for the same boy back in elementary school. They became rivals, constantly trying to undermine the other one's achievements. It all stopped when Sakura's parents died. Ino was the one to break the ice, knowing that the pinkette needed a friend more than a rival. However they still called each other Pig and Forehead.

Sakura hugged her friend immediately, tears coming out from her eyes. "I'm so sorry for not saying goodbye." She sobbed. "I thought…I…" She regretted for not saying goodbye before leaving Uzushiogakure. She was afraid that their friendship was over, that when Ino receives the wedding invitation it would end up in the trashcan. So, Sakura felt relieved when she saw the blonde on her threshold.

"Oh, don't cry. Because I'm going to cry as well." The other woman sobbed.

"I'm so glad that you are here."

"Me too, though I had to fight your maids." Ino laughed, pointing at the two women behind her. "They didn't believe that I'm your friend and have the permission to enter your room or something."

"Come in, I have a lot to tell you."

* * *

 

Ino stared at her with a slack jaw.

"So, let's revise, because this whole situation that you explained a moment ago makes no sense." The blonde closed her eyes, massaging her temples. "Naruto is currently in the palace, knows nothing about your marriage being an arranged one and you _hope_ that it'll stay that way?

"Yeah, that pretty much sums it all up." Sakura pursed her lips.

"Are. You. Out. Of. Your. Mind? Like seriously, what were you thinking when you wrote that letter?" The pinkette winced at the sheer volume of her friend's question. Yeah, ear ringing and permanent deafness was definitely not something she missed about Ino.

"Well, you might have forgotten my past relations with Naruto."

Ino formed an "O" with her mouth; she looked like an enlightened person, someone who discovered the meaning of life, or something else of equal importance for mankind.

"Um, that _partly_ explains a few things." She spoke up after a few minutes of silence.

"Oh, I'm glad that you gave me your seal of approval, Pig." The pinkette replied sarcastically.

"Now, now, don't get so cynical. It was still a stupid decision in my opinion. Like honestly, how old were you when you made that promise? Four?"

"Six." Sakura mumbled.

"Same, same." Ino just waved if off. "And he left when you were thirteen. The very fact from him of _considering_ that you'll keep such kind of promise is absurd."

"You are talking like you are expecting him of finding out."

"Oh, he'll find out. There's no doubt about it. He might not have found out had he stayed outside the palace, but it's just the matter of time when some person of high status mentions the circumstances of your marriage. Naruto might be dense, but he's not an idiot."

"I'm doomed." Sakura sighed.

"No, you are not. I think he took the news of the wedding quite well. I mean, considering his theoretical feelings."

"Do you think that he doesn't feel like that anymore?" She bit down on her lower lip. "The way he felt before leaving home."

"Well, an awful lot of time has passed since then. And you know, people change…he might've met someone during his travels. Who knows?" Ino shrugged, carefully eyeing her friend.

"You are right."

Blue eyes narrowed. "Then why are you making a face like someone kicked you in the butt?"

"Me?" Sakura jumped, looking up at her companion. "I…" She averted her gaze. "I might be…disappointed?"

"About what?"

"That he might've found someone else. Of course, it's really selfish of me for wanting him to feel the same way towards me as before. I mean, even I've been dating boys in the past couple of years, but still. I should be glad and happy, since he found someone. I-"

Ino put her hand on the pinkette's shoulder. "Forehead, you don't have to explain everything. I won't judge you or anything."

"Thanks." She smiled.

* * *

 

Naruto walked on the empty halls of the palace, not really having a concrete destination. He looked at his bandaged hand, a fond smile appearing on his face. The ugly, dirty he had his hand wrapped in was long discarded, a crisp white bandage being in its place. Sakura hadn't changed even a bit, if anything she has become even more beautiful.

The news of her engagement felt like a sucker punch. It was unexpected, something that he hadn't anticipated. He felt anger towards her, because she hadn't kept her promise to him. She betrayed him and it was unforgivable. How could she…

But then, after the fog of anger that clouded his vision dissipated, he saw clearly. Her betrayal didn't feel like that anymore. If anything, he blamed himself for everything. How could he accuse her of something like that? He didn't have the right to do so.

She was beautiful, caring, funny, and smart and the list could go on and on. Of course she found someone who she loved and felt the same way towards her. That man was one hell of a lucky guy.

"Don't you feel sorry for her?" He heard someone talking from one of the rooms.

"Why should I? It might be an arranged marriage, but she still gets to become the queen of the country. I would most certainly accept such kind of fate."

Two maids came out of the room, both holding laundry baskets. They looked strangely at the backside of the blonde man who was running down the corridor.

 

 


	10. If You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Genma looked over her, scanning her each and every feature. The woman had shoulder length black hair, black eyes and an average looking face and stature. She was pretty, but not the kind of beautiful that would make him want to woo her. With her black pencil skirt and white blouse she looked like your typical secretary, the only feature that was absent was a notepad. And here he was hoping that at least he'll have some eye candy.

Shiranui Genma and his men waited for the approaching convoy of cars to reach the palace gates. He played with the senbon in his mouth, the metal piece making a clinking noise every time it hit his canines. He did this every time he was impatient or just plain bored. This time, it was both cases.

The queen of the Land of Whirlpools, Senju Tsunade was about to arrive after almost two hours of waiting.

As the head of the royal guard, it was his duty to ensure that everything went smoothly. With the monarch arriving, security had to be tightened tenfold, not to mention that they had to synchronize their operations with the soldiers from Whirlpool.

Such a pain in the ass. It was times like these that he cursed Kakashi for promoting him. At first, the title of captain of the royal guard had a really nice ring to it. It was considered to be a really prestigious position, each captain being respected around the country. And women always liked men with decoration covered uniforms. So he accepted the title almost immediately after it being offered. And now…well now he regrets it. What's the importance of having such a nice uniform, when he didn't have the time or energy to meet pretty girls?

The convoy passed through the gates, stopping in front of the stairs that led to the palace entrance. One of the servants opened the car's door, Senju Tsunade emerging. She had a pretty nasty frown on her face, scaring the poor boy who opened the door.

"Your Majesty." Genma bowed.

"Yeah, yeah." Tsunade waved her hand, walking towards the entrance.

"Please excuse her behavior. We had a…rather uncomfortable travel." The brunette, who got out of the car after the queen bowed.

Genma looked over her, scanning her each and every feature. The woman had shoulder length black hair, black eyes and an average looking face and stature. She was pretty, but not the kind of beautiful that would make him want to woo her. With her black pencil skirt and white blouse she looked like your typical secretary, the only feature that was absent was a notepad. And here he was hoping that at least he'll have some eye candy.

"I'm Kato Shizune, secretary of the queen." She bowed once more.

"Shiranui Genma, captain of the royal guard." He shook hands with her.

"Then you are the person I've been hoping to meet." She smiled.

"Oh…I didn't know I was so famous." Genma smirked.

Black eyes rolled with slight annoyance at his words. "Tsunade-sama does not want guards following her, only her own ones."

"What?" He wrinkled his eyebrows.

"She cherishes privacy, and hates being followed by strangers."

Genma looked over her shoulders, searching for the queens personal guards, since no one followed her after leaving the car. There were only three guards from Whirlpool. Their sheer number made him almost laugh out loud. The queen of the Land of Whirlpools was visiting another country and they only sent three guards with her. _Three_. Were they so undermanned? He knew that the war pushed the small country into a financial crisis, but this was plain ridiculous.

"Um…I do not want to offend you or anything, but…don't you think that you didn't prepare quite well?" He motioned towards the trio.

"Don't worry Shiranui-san. The queen and I know what we are doing. You may not know, but Tsunade-sama is highly capable of defending herself. And so do I. No need to worry." The woman smiled once again, her eyes filled with amusement.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot let this happen. It is my responsibility to ensure her safety, and if anything goes amyss, my ass will get kicked. Quite painfully."

"It's a good thing then that you do not have any other choice than to accept it. Tsunade-sama _will_ be guarded by her own men. This wasn't a proposal, but a statement." The friendly air around Shizune changed, making him feel quite uncomfortable.

But his surge of anger dimmed any sort of other emotion he had. He felt insulted to say the least. He was the boss when it came to security stuff and he'll be damned if he let some random woman who barely came up to his chest order him around.

"You-" He was preparing to land a pretty nasty speech about authority to her, when she cut him off swiftly.

"I'm sorry Shiranui-san, but I'm in a hurry. Can't let Tsunade-sama wander around the palace without guards." She smiled, leaving him and his men behind.

_Damn._

* * *

 

The pink haired woman was sitting on her bed, reading the book Kakashi gave her. He was right; the book was really interesting, much more enjoyable than those dry chronicles. Her room's door opened abruptly, Naruto entering immediately. Sakura was about to reprimand him for his rudeness, when she saw his expression.

He _knew_.

Well, here goes her plan on him not finding out the truth. She braced herself for the impending chaos that would erupt in a matter of seconds. Sakura could only hope that he won't cause much trouble, like killing Kakashi or something. Oh, God! What if Naruto would attack him or something? This was so bad.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He looked betrayed, but calm. That was surprising.

"Because it wouldn't change a thing." Sakura responded after a long pause.

"How could Tsunade-baachan let something like this happen?"

"She didn't have any other choice." The pink haired woman looked at her folded hands that rested on her lap.

"Then how could _you_? You-"

This made her head snap up with such force that her neck started to hurt, though she was far too furious to notice.

"Do you _honestly_ think that I'm the kind of person who would voluntarily accept such kind of fate?"

Naruto looked to the side. "No." He muttered.

"I hope so. There was no other way, I tried to do everything, but there's no other solution." Sakura sighed.

"Then come with me. We'll leave this place and no one could find us!" He said excited, almost like a child.

"Can the entire population of the Land of Whirlpools come as well?" She raised a pink brow. His only response was deep silence. "This is not as easy as you think it is. If I suddenly disappear, my people would suffer the consequences…I can't let that happen. You can't always avoid responsibility by running away."

"What do you mean by that? Do you think that the reason why I left was because of that?" Naruto snapped.

"I don't think, I _know_." Her voice was uncharacteristically calm, to which she complimented herself internally.

"Know? You know nothing." He gritted, fisting his hands at his sides.

"Nothing?" Sakura cocked her head to the side, narrowing her eyes. "Stop acting like you are the only one who had to suffer. Like it wasn't hard for me as well! I lost my parents too, you know…" She whispered the last sentence. "I might have smiled and encouraged you when you told me that you are leaving, but I was devastated deep inside. The only person who could actually understand what I felt left me behind. He didn't even ask me if I wanted to come…" Her eyes stung.

"But you…you had a future. You were a princess, and a medic to be. I didn't want you to give up something like that for me." Naruto took a hesitant step closer.

"I was ready though. You only had to ask." The first tear slid down on her cheek, it soon got followed by another one. Naruto rushed over to her, kneeling down in front of her.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered, raising a shaking hand in order to caress her cheek. "I shouldn't have left."

"No." Jade looked into cobalt, both feeling like an unknown force was pulling them towards each other.

"I really missed you Sakura-chan." Naruto whispered, his thumb caressing her soft cheek. "When I heard about your engagement…I was so angry, that I destroyed almost everything inside the room."

"Is this the reason why you injured your hand?" Sakura grabbed his bandaged right hand.

"Yes. Ero-sennin had to knock me out to make me stop. You know, I was planning on returning this year. I finally found peace and my memories weren't such a burden as back then. I was looking forward to seeing you, to finally embracing you. And to…finally fulfilling my promise."

_The sun was about to set, signaling the end of another day. There were only few people on the beach, and even those were preparing to leave. Two children though were still running around, their laughter being even louder than the sound of the waves._

" _Naruto! I found another one!" Sakura screamed in delight, raising a shell up in her small hand._

" _That's so beautiful, Sakura-chan!"_

" _Do you think that mom would like it?" She looked at the shell in her hand skeptically._

" _I'm sure." He grinned. "Look what I found." Naruto opened his palm, revealing a twinkling green stone._

" _Wow! What is it? It soooo pretty!" The little girl exclaimed._

" _It's called sea glass. Here." He grabbed Sakura's hand and put the glass in her palm, her green eyes widening because of his actions. "One day, when I'll be big enough, I'll give you a ring with a precious stone in it, just like how dad did to mom." The blonde smiled softly. "Will you accept it? Would you be my bride?" Both children had faint lines of blush on their cheeks._

" _Hm." Sakura nodded._

"It's too late now, huh?" The pink haired woman smiled bitterly after remembering that day. They were so young, barely six years old at that time. It was a time she remembered with great fondness. Back then, both of their parents were alive, and they were far too young to grasp the difficulty of life.

"If I…if I had stayed, this wouldn't be happening right now…I messed up."

"If you…" Sakura trailed off when she saw his lips beginning to come closer. Her index finger came up, stopping his lips before they could even brush hers. "This, this isn't right." Her voice was hoarse and filled with pain. She saw the broken look on Naruto's face, and it took all of her might to stop herself from giving in. "I might not want this marriage, but it does not give me the right to be unfaithful." She slipped her finger from his soft lips.

"If you had stayed back then, I wouldn't be the person I'm today. You… when you left, the only thing that made me want to get out of bed every morning were my studies. I buried myself in them entirely. I learned a lot during those times, not just about medicine, but about coping as well. If you had stayed, it would've taken both of us a lot more time to recover." She stared at her hands that were on her lap, too afraid to meet his gaze.

"If you think that this is the best for you, then I can't change that. But if you change your mind, I'll be here for you. I'll always be." Naruto stood up, and then kissed her forehead gently. He left her room soon after this, without saying anything else.

His words and that simple kiss on her forehead that sealed everything was the final blow for her. Her cheeks became soaked with the tears that seemed like they would never end. She flopped back on her bed, curling up into a ball.

Although seven years have passed since their last encounter, since the day he left the capital's gates, her feelings towards him still lingered. She thought that that certain chapter of her life was already closed. These feelings and memories got slowly buried with each day of his leaving passing. Naruto's visit opened up wounds that she thought were completely healed. It was a mistake that she invited him. Such an enormous mistake.


	11. Red String

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura resisted the urge to snort at his words. It was so absurd to say these words about their…relationship. It had nothing to do with two lovers who were fated to meet and unite. It was so disappointing to have such a beautiful legend linked to something which was forced.

The capital echoed with the sound of bells. Their tune could be heard throughout each and every part of the city, making people aware of the soon starting ceremony. Thousands of people gathered around the square in front of the shrine, all waiting for the service to begin.

Sakura felt sick. Even though she had nothing in her stomach by this time, thanks to her previous visits to the bathroom, the nonexistent contents of her belly still wanted to escape. She was nervous, that's for sure. Since this was a royal wedding, thousands of people would be attending the whole ritual, and these were only the _invited_ guests. Because the simple citizens of the Land of Fire were also paying attention to this historical moment, thanks to the live broadcast of the whole ceremony. Who would've thought that so many people would be interested in the loss of her freedom?

Sakura put a hand in front of her mouth, hiding the enormous yawn that erupted. She's been up since the first rays of the sun appeared having been poked and prodded by hairdressers, makeup artists and tailors. The different kinds of ornaments on her head made her neck hurt and the damn wedding dress must have weighted at list half of her own body mass. And to think that she had to spend the whole day in this ridiculous getup.

"Enter." She said after a brief knock could be heard on her room's door.

Tsunade stepped in, already dressed in a forest green furisode with golden embroidery. With her blonde hair in a chignon and having makeup on she looked even more beautiful than usual. Even though she was well past fifty years old she could easily pass as a woman in her twenties. Heck, a whole branch of the beauty industry specialized in cracking the secret about her youthful look.

Her surrogate mother halted in her steps, looking at the young woman in front of her with awe.

"Sakura…you…you look beautiful." She whispered.

"Thank you." The pink haired woman cracked a smile.

"I just came to say goodbye, since there won't be an opportunity later on." The soft tone to her voice was so strange for Sakura. The blonde always had a gruff undertone to her speech, rarely using this softer version.

"This isn't final, so don't cry." Tsunade stepped closer, grabbing both of her daughter's hands. The bride just nodded, trying to suppress the wave of sadness that washed over her. "You have to know that I'm really proud of you. You are the best daughter that any mother could wish for. And I'm so incredibly sorry for failing you."

Sakura bit down on her ruby red lips, fighting against the tears that threatened to appear. Suddenly she felt guilty for making her mother feel like this. She shouldn't have acted the way she did after receiving the news of her betrothal. She should've known that Tsunade did everything in her power to change the fate that waited for her.

"It's not your fault. Things happen and I was at the wrong place in the wrong time." She smiled sadly. "And I couldn't live with myself if others had to suffer because of my selfishness." She felt the air from her lungs being knocked out as strong arms wrapped around her torso. Tsunade wasn't the kind of person to give hugs to everyone anytime, but when she did, the blond made sure that it was a bone crushing and suffocating one.

"I will miss you so much." The older woman whispered.

"I'll miss you too." Sakura wheezed.

A faint knock could be heard from the door. "The car is going to leave in 15 minutes." Shizune said from outside the room.

The two women looked at each other, with apparent sadness on their faces. Though they knew that this won't be the last time they saw each other, the fact that things would change, that nothing will be the same after this day made this moment sorrowful.

* * *

 

The pristine white car sped through the empty main road that led to the country's most important shrine. Huge masses of people line the street, all cheering and throwing confetti. Since the windows of the vehicle weren't tinted, they could see their queen-to-be's pink hair and a few parts of her wedding gown. Their cheers grew even louder when she started waving at them.

The car stopped once it reached the square in front of the shrine. Sakura inhaled deeply, enjoying the calmness which the interior brought. Things will get a lot more hectic once she steps out from the vehicle. And well, her life would take a really different turn to what she imagined a few years ago.

The door opened, the cheers becoming even louder. The weight of her dress made it really hard for her to climb out gracefully, but thankfully Ino was there to help her. Sakura smiled at her blonde friend while she arranged the train of the gown.

She sought her blue eyes friend's help after her encounter with Naruto a few days ago. She retold their conversation and even mentioned their almost kiss. Ino listened with a wide open mouth and didn't even interrupt her, which was by all means really surprising. Though Sakura knew that she did right by not letting things escalate with Naruto, she needed someone else's input about the whole ordeal, and Ino didn't disappoint.

Sakura looked up at the enormous torii that marked the entrance to the shrine, her anxiousness reaching new heights. Gulping, she walked inside the temple grounds, noting the rows upon rows of guests that stood up from their seats and bowed deeply upon her arrival. She set her chin up and proceeded on moving forward to the end of the row, where Kakashi and the priest were standing.

His droopy eyes widened at her sight. She was… she was…

Her hair was in an up do, only a few hair strands were framing her face loosely. The bun was pierced by a golden stick, having strings of crimson gems and amber running down at both ends. They created the illusion of fire once the light hit them from different directions. Her face was powdered white, but her lips were ruby red.

The gown itself was probably the most intricately ornamented one Kakashi has ever seen. Her white kimono had different kinds of floral patterns sewn onto it with pearls with a scarlet obi wrapped around her narrow waist. The bottom part of the garment was a lot looser than a normal kimono, almost like an A-Line skirt. But what stood out the most was the blood red haori on top of the white kimono, a seemingly never ending train following her. It was painted with all possible shades of red, blurred together but surprisingly still resembling some kind of pattern. The whole garment looked like it was on fire.

Though it was customary for women of the Land of Fire to wear something fire themed during their wedding, like having their lips painted crimson or earring with red gemstones, this was something no one was expecting. At least not him. But he couldn't complain, because red suited her really well. And she looked so…

Beautiful?

No, that was such a superficial word to describe her visage.

Astonishing?

That was more fitting, but still lacking.

Otherworldly?

Yes, that was more like it. She looked like someone who fell from the skies, like a goddess.

And he was complaining about having to wear this ridiculous black kimono with golden embroidery. He thought that it was really flashy and he'll stand out too much with it. But his wife to be looked so exquisite that no one would remember how he looked on this day, not that he was complaining.

She stopped next to him, sending a neutral look towards his direction. Sakura's calmness really surprised him; he was expecting her to be angry or at least more passionate about this situation. But she looked really nonchalant, like she already accepted her fate fully.

The priest started talking, his booming voice reaching even the furthest corners of the shrine. The speech was so boring that Kakashi zoned out immediately, only focusing back his attention when he started speaking about more important things.

"Now, please raise your right hand." He said eventually, they both complied. The priest raised up a red string that was a few feet long. He wrapped each end around their wrists, tying them together.

"It is said that those who are fated to tie their lives together are connected by a red string, the string of fate. This string on your wrists shall symbolize God's will of bringing you together."

Sakura resisted the urge to snort at his words. It was so absurd to say these words about their… _relationship_. It had nothing to do with two lovers who were fated to meet and unite. It was so disappointing to have such a beautiful legend linked to something which was forced.

"You shall wear these bracelets until the end of your lives, for these are more important than rings or other jewelry. The knots signify the way two separate lives have been tied together until the end of time." Sakura looked at the string around her wrist while the priest recited another prayer. It was such a simple thing, yet it had so much meaning behind it.

After repeating their vows and getting their wedding bands on came probably the highlight of the whole wedding: the kiss. It was one of the things Sakura dreaded the most. It wasn't like this would be her first kiss, but she knew that it'll be awkward as hell nonetheless.

Kakashi leaned down, his hands wrapped around her waist; his masked lips touched her own ones in a matter of seconds. She reciprocated the kiss, but the feeling of butterflies, sparks or fireworks didn't appear, though it wasn't so unpleasant as well. However it was quite frustrating that he was still wearing that stupid mask.

After their marriage has been marked as official, her coronation as the queen of the Land of Fire came next. The long speech of the priest was about how a righteous ruler should behave, how she should defend their country until their last drop of blood and such.

"Do you promise and swear to always do what's best of interest for the Land of Fire? Will you do anything in your power to protect the people of this country?" The priest held the crown up while Sakura was sitting on a throne like chair.

"I solemnly promise to do so." She answered, and then felt the weight of the crown on her head. Sakura stood up, looking at the people gathered.

"Presenting Her Majesty Hatake Sakura, queen of the Land of Fire."

It somehow felt overwhelming. From this day forward she won't be just a princess, but a queen. That meant that she had a lot more responsibilities towards the people of this country than before. But at least it seemed like they liked her, they didn't look at her like some kind of foreign intruder who tried to influence their oh so precious king, too bad that this couldn't be said about the council members.

They went back to the palace riding an open carriage so that the city residents could see the newlywed couple. She waved and smiled at them, pretending like the previous happenings of the day were the highlight of her life. The cheers and showers of flowers followed them on the whole way back.

Kakashi helped her out of the carriage, for which she was incredibly thankful. He led her towards the palace gardens where the banquet would be held. Thankfully they didn't have to stay until the end of it, since royal couple had other duties as well today, which made her nervous like never before.

"You look really gorgeous." He said as they neared the garden.

"Thank you. You don't look that bad yourself." She smiled up at him.

"Well, I tried but maybe I should've used a little bit of mascara. You know, to make my eye more distinguishable." His nonchalant tone made her laugh.

It was actually really nice of him for trying to lighten the solemn mood of this whole day. She thought that this day would be filled with tears and sadness, but maybe it wouldn't be that bad. Maybe.

"Hey, the bride should be the center of attention." This earned a chuckle from Kakashi.

Sakura inhaled deeply as they entered the garden, the gaze of hundreds of people on them once again.

 

* * *

 

It was time.

The final event of the wedding day would start in a few minutes, and it made her sick to the core.

She sat inside her shared bedroom with Kakashi, waiting for him. Her thumb and index finger pinched the skin of her palm, an action Sakura often did when she was incredibly nervous. Like right now.

The pink haired woman jumped up from her seat instantly as the room's door opened, Kakashi stepping inside. He was wearing black pajamas, with his ever present mask still intact.

Kakashi looked at his wife, who was wearing a lot simpler attire than before. And if someone would ask his opinion, he'd definitely say that she looked even prettier in this simple getup than in the earlier one. Her hair was braided on the side; the white nightgown was made of the lightest fabric ever created. She looked so beautiful but fragile, the sad look on her face made his heart sink. Kakashi heard her sighing, then looking straight into his eyes. Sakura tried to look confident, like she didn't get fazed by the whole situation at all. But he could see through her mask.

She was terrified.

"I'm going to sleep on the couch." Kakashi stated, earning a surprised look from her.

"Wh…what?"

"I'm not going to take something that does not belong to me." He stated simply. "I…I've already taken so much from you…"

"But…the council…"

"Don't worry about anything. They can't make us do something like this. I won't let them force us." Kakashi put his hands on her shoulders, trying to reassure her. "If…if we ever get to this point…then it'll be our decision." He scratched the back of his neck, a faint trace of blush appearing above his mask. Had the situation not been so serious, Sakura would've definitely teased him about it.

"Thank you." She smiled, the sickness she felt a few minutes ago instantly vanishing.

"Good night." He disappeared behind one of the doors, leaving her completely alone.

"Good night."

The only problem was that sleep didn't come easily for either of them.

* * *


	12. The Day After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You don't like fish?" Sakura cocked her head to the side.
> 
> "I absolutely despise fish. But the royal medic is adamant on making me eat it twice a week." She could tell that his face shifted underneath his mask into a pout.

The first thing she saw as she opened her eyes was the spotless white ceiling of the room. Stuccoes in the form of leaves littered the white surface, giving the impression that she was under the canopy of trees. The mint coloured walls somehow soothed her and she was really grateful that they didn't have even a speck of gold on them. Each and every piece of furniture inside the room was painted white, their design looking minimalistic compared to the ones her temporary room had.

Sakura stretched in her bed, her fingers grazing the bed's headboard. She remembered Kakashi's act from the night before making her feel slightly embarrassed. It wasn't like she was a virgin to begin with…though this wasn't a common knowledge and she intended on keeping it that way, she always thought that this physical act should be reserved for two people who truly had feelings for each other. Of course her frequent meetings with people who had STD's during her work at the hospital had a certain role in forming her opinion as well. But this didn't change the fact that what the man did yesterday was really noble. He could've jumped her and shown that he means business, but he didn't choose to. And she really appreciated it. Yesterday was really emotional for her to begin with and being violated would've been the cherry on top.

Of course she still held resentment over Kakashi. Sure, he was nice at times and all but it didn't change the fact that he practically ran over her country and forced her to marry him. As a medic she treasured open mindedness so she tried to be objective regarding him, but it was still really hard to do so.

She still couldn't believe that she's a married woman and a queen at that. Well, these definitely weren't in her plans for the upcoming five years.

Sakura sat up, her gaze falling on the white door behind which Kakashi disappeared the night before. Curiosity getting the best of her, she stood up and walked towards it. She reached it in no time, partially thanks to the fact that this room wasn't as ridiculously big as her former one. Her digits wrapped around the doorknob, but she was suddenly too hesitant to turn it.

After all, Kakashi didn't tell her that she could follow him or to just simply open the door. What if he's still sleeping or…maybe changing into his clothes… Sakura could feel her cheeks heating at that thought.

"This is ridiculous. You've seen naked men before." She muttered, and then turned the knob, stepping over the threshold that separated the two rooms.

This room had dark green walls and brown furniture, if anything it looked even more modest than hers. Much to her surprise it had a bed as well, which meant that instead of the two of them sharing a room they had separate ones.

Kakashi was sitting on one of the armchairs situated in front of curtain covered windows. By the looks of it, his face was bare, but the all too familiar orange book covered everything beside his grey eye and forehead. The silver haired man pulled on his mask as soon as Sakura closed the door behind her.

"Good morning." She said, her voice still raspy because of sleep.

"Morning." He turned a page.

"How come we have separate rooms?" She raised a curious brow.

"Do you mind it?" Kakashi finally looked at her, a teasing glint appearing in his lone eye.

She snorted, which by the way was really unladylike, but who cares. "Absolutely not."

"We'll be having separate bedrooms and bathrooms. The door which we both share can be locked from both sides, so you don't have to worry." Kakashi closed the book with a snap, putting it down on the small coffee table in front of his seat. "I'm going to have breakfast. Would you like to come?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go." He stepped up from his seat, easily reaching the door with a few long strides.

"Did you sleep well?" She could feel his sideways glance on her.

"Yes. The bed was really comfortable. And it's actually really nice that the room isn't that fancy."

"Aah…" Kakashi started rubbing the back of his neck. "I knew that you didn't like the way your temporary room looked so I actually requested the interior designers not to make them far too flashy." She heard him mumble.

"Thank you." A ghost of a smile graced her lips.

"You are welcome."

Kakashi opened the double doors that were the entrance to the palace's dining room. It was enormous; its white walls had windows reaching from floor to ceiling, letting the morning sun cast its rays on the wooden furniture. A lacquered table stood in the middle of the space. It was ridiculously long in Sakura's opinion, since both of them sat at each of its end; one had to talk fairly loudly so that their companion could hear them. Not that they talked that much during the meals they shared, even sharing a meal together was a rare occurrence. With Kakashi being occupied with ruling a whole country, he often ate in his office.

That was partly the reason why Sakura hated to eat inside this room. Sitting all alone in this enormous space, with a servant behind her back made her uneasy. Back in Uzushiogakure she ate in the presence of Tsunade and Shizune. Even though they didn't talk much, the fact that she wasn't sitting all alone made everything more pleasant.

Breakfast consisted of vegetable salad and fish, though it didn't seem like Kakashi was all that happy about the chef's choice. He rested his chin in one palm, while picking at the small tuna bits with his fork.

"You don't like fish?" Sakura cocked her head to the side.

"I absolutely despise fish. But the royal medic is adamant on making me eat it twice a week." She could tell that his face shifted underneath his mask into a pout.

The pink haired woman snickered at his act.

"It's not funny." Kakashi mumbled.

"Yes it is. Besides, fish is really good-"

"For my heart, yeah. I know." He drawled.

Kurenai walked inside the room, only stopping when she reached Kakashi.

"Your Majesty, Jiraiya-san and Uzumaki Naruto have left the palace early in the morning. Asuma reported that Tsunade-sama has boarded the ship towards Whirlpool half an hour ago."

Sakura's heart dropped at the mention of Naruto. She saw the blonde briefly during the wedding ceremony. The calmness he showed back then surprised her. Sakura was expecting him, though dreadfully; to make a scene, probably kick some flower ornaments and chairs over. But to her relief, that didn't happen. Although those things usually took place in overly dramatic romance novels, and who was she to kid, her life was _not_ such kind. She was glad that he left without saying goodbye; it would've been probably a really awkward situation.

She was walking back to her room half an hour later after finishing her meal. Much to her surprise someone was waiting for her inside the room. A girl, probably in her late teens was standing beside the bed. She bowed deeply upon her entrance, a few strands of her brown bun loosening. By the grey dress and white apron she was wearing it was easy to tell that she was a maid.

"Your Highness. I'm Hanamoto Keiko, your personal attendant." She spoke with the same intonation which those who lived in Konoha used, but Sakura could still hear a slight accent in her speech.

"Hello." Sakura smiled.

"I've already prepared your clothes for the day your Majesty. I've took into consideration your daily schedule and the weather. I hope that it befits your expectations." Keiko spread out a turquoise dress on the bed, careful not to wrinkle the fabric.

The pink haired woman walked closer, her fingers grazing over the garb. She could see the uneasy look in the young girl's expression, like she was expecting for Sakura to throw the cloth at her.

"It's really nice." She smiled at the teen. "I'm going to change now, so you can leave."

"But- I should be helping you with it."

"Oh, no. I can manage to put it on by myself."

"If you say so, Your Majesty." Keiko bowed and left the room.

Koharu waited for the young girl at the end of the hallway. The maid stopped in front of the older woman and bowed deeply.

"Were the sheets stained?"

"No, Koharu-sama." She stated, her head still hanging low.

Her wrinkly eyes narrowed. "I see."

 

 


	13. Purpose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The amount of excitement she felt made her heart beat rapidly against her ribcage. Sakura finally had something meaningful to do, something that had a purpose and most importantly it was for the benefit of others.

She thought that her life as queen would change…that it would be slightly less boring. That was the only reason why she looked forward to her new life in Konoha. Because becoming a queen would meen that she'll have to do some diplomatic stuff. Like becoming glorified nanny to some tourists posing as diplomats or visiting neighboring countries in order to strengthen political relationships and such.

But her life felt _empty_. The highlight of her whole week was when she found the medical textbook section of the palace library…but her happiness was short lived upon seeing that the three shelves of the section contained the most basic of the literature. Sure, she could read other books, which she enthusiastically did in the first few days, but then she got bored of it all.

By this time, she was eager of doing _anything_. Because she was sure as hell that she'll turn crazy in the matter of days if this continued on. She'll go down in history lane as the queen who went crazy because of boredom. Sweet.

Sakura needed a purpose. A mission. Something that could keep her occupied for quite a long time. Something that was a challenge, but not too overwhelming. Something that could benefit people.

"Your Majesty, are you all right?" Keiko asked, her concern showing.

Sakura jumped slightly, getting out of her daze. The pink haired woman was sitting in an armchair, looking out the window it was facing.

"Yes. Of course. I just zoned out, that's all." She cracked a smile. "I didn't even hear that you entered."

"I knocked…but when I didn't hear any response I figured that you were somewhere else. I just brought back your freshly cleaned clothes." The teen pointed at the clothes rack in the middle of the room. The left sleeve of her grey uniform slid up, revealing a huge patch of burned skin on her wrist.

"What happened?" Sakura pointed at the injury, her medical instincts kicking in.

"Oh…I just had a little accident while ironing your clothes. But it's nothing special." Keiko shrugged it off. "I put butter on it, so it'll be okay."

"No, it won't. The butter might make it worse; it could transfer bacteria and cause infection." Sakura jumped up from her seat and stormed towards her walk in closet. Squatting down, she fished out her medical kit from under one of the shoe racks. "Keiko, please sit down on the bed."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Sakura sat down beside the younger girl, sliding up the sleeve of her uniform to observe the wound. It didn't look that serious as she thought it did at first sight, but it still needed treatment. A blister was forming at the most affected part of the burnt skin.

She opened her kit, grabbing a bottle of disinfectant. "This will hurt a little, but I need to eliminate even the slightest chance of infection." She poured a few drops of the liquid, foam forming on the area. After removing the foam, she put a thick layer of ointment on the burnt skin and wrapped a strip of gauze around the girl's wrist. Keiko didn't even wince during the whole process.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"You are welcome. But who told you to treat your wound that way, was it a doctor?"

"My mother…actually it's a common practice here. What's a doctor?"

"You know…the person who takes care of the sick."

"Oh, Your Majesty meant a healer. Only really rich persons have access to them."

"What? You mean that the rest of the population doesn't?"

"No. There are a few people who have knowledge of how to treat some illnesses and what herbs to use…but that's all." Keiko played with the frayed ends of the gauze.

Sakura didn't even dare to ask about hospitals or ambulances or anything of the sort. It sounded so absurd to her that such a huge country didn't have proper medical care for the civilian population. As a medic it infuriated her that a country could leave its citizens without a chance at having their illnesses and injuries properly cured, without having them worrying about the chance of dying during the whole process.

And then realization hit her. If there weren't medics or hospitals, then someone had to change this. And that person is going to be her.

….

The amount of excitement she felt made her heart beat rapidly against her ribcage. Sakura finally had something meaningful to do, something that had a purpose and most importantly it was for the benefit of others.

Of course she was still far away from her goal. First she had to get permission from Kakashi to start this project. And honestly, she wasn't sure that he would agree. First of all, it was one thing to maintain an already functioning system and another to build one from scratch. And in this case they had to start from zero. So, her main objective for the moment was collecting as much information as she could in order to persuade Kakashi.

The pink haired woman practically ran to the palace archives. According to Kurenai she would find all the information she needed for her research there. The piles upon piles of scrolls inside the room told her that she'll spend her night here. It reminded her of the countless all-nighters she pulled during her work at the hospital.

She couldn't help but smile.

….

It was finally finished. Her green gaze fell on the stack of papers she prepared the only hours before. She put them carefully inside a manila folder, preparing to visit Kakashi in his office immediately.

She started feeling anxious the closer she got. Sakura was always afraid of failure…it made her feel inept, useless. That's why she constantly tried to give her best and even more whatever she did. Because if she did so, the chances of failing decreased. But even though she gave her all, disaster struck sometimes, and the bitter taste of failing always sickened her.

The image of four mangled bodies flashed before her eyes, she could still remember those glassy eyes and the feel of warm blood between her fingers as she tried to save them, even though she knew that it was far too late. That was the first time she felt utter failure. Sakura shook her head violently, now was not the time to remember.

Wanting to get through with this whole ordeal, Sakura barged inside Kakashi's office, without even slightly considering a knock on the door. Her husband instantly looked up from his paperwork, a glare adorning his visible features.

"Thanks for knocking." His eye was crinkled, but his voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"You know that I hate formalities." The pinkette sat down in front of his desk, folding her arms under her chest.

"To what do I owe the honor of your presence, oh dear wife of mine?" Sakura just rolled her eyes at his antics.

"I want to build a hospital." She stated bluntly.

"What?"

"I said, I want to build a hospital."

"Why?"

"Because, the country's health care is a joke, that's why." To be honest, Kakashi could agree one hundred percent, but the pride for his country just wouldn't let him approve.

"Well, I'm sorry that it's not up to par with your standards, but I think that if we managed to survive for the past one hundred years, we'll cope for another century or so." Sakura threw the folder that was resting on her lap at his desk, still glaring. "And what's this?"

"The mortality and natality rates. I think that with proper health care, we could drastically reduce the percentage."

As much as he hated to admit, she was right. They've been trying to increase the number of population long before he became the king. They made reforms with which the food's quality and quantity intensified, but because of the wars and poor medical care, people still died at an early age.

"Did you know that with vaccination and birth care, we could decrease child mortality almost up to eighty percent? Not to mention that vaccination could stop the epidemics in no time. I even did a little research on the soldiers who fought in the war. In my opinion most of the deaths and amputations could have been avoided with the presence of proficient medics."

"I see you did a quite thorough research." Kakashi looked through the charts inside the folder and couldn't help but to feel impressed.

"Of course. If I set my mind on something, I'll do it to the end." Sakura held her chin high proudly.

"When did you do all of this?"

"Last night." Had it not been for the mask, Sakura would've seen the awestruck expression on Kakashi's face.

"And who would be the head of healthcare?" He already knew her answer.

"Me, of course. I don't want to sound snobbish, but honestly, I'm probably the only person in this country who's skilled enough. You might not know, but I was the head surgeon of Uzushiogakure General Hospital before moving here. I can also ask Shizune to come here for a few months in order to help in organizing the whole system."

"You know, it'll cost lots of money…" The silver haired man stated as he looked at the paper that had the approximate costs of setting up a fully functional facility.

Sakura leaded forward in her seat, putting one hand on the table. "Think of it as a long term investment that would prove fruitful after some time. Of course you won't have monetary gain from it, but your citizens will be healthier and there will be new job opportunities for people."

Her arguments alone convinced him, she really did look into each and every aspect. But what really sealed the deal for Kakashi was the fire in her eyes. Sakura looked so radiant, so alive while she spoke to him. Ever since he met her, he saw a dying light in her eyes, which practically perished the moment these red strings were tied around their wrists. He knew that in the past few weeks after their wedding she struggled finding her place at the palace. Kakashi could've given her a task in order to make her days less boring, but he felt that he shouldn't be that person. She would deem it as another way of him invading upon her freedom. Sakura would hate him even more than she already does and he didn't want that to happen.

The silver haired man rested his elbows on the top of his desk, lacking his fingers together. Sakura tried to be nonchalant but he could see that she was nervous by the way she slightly chewed on her lower lip.

"I guess we could give it a shot." Kakashi shrugged. Her casual demeanor changed in an instant upon hearing his words.

"Really?" He couldn't help but smile upon how she practically radiated with happiness in that one moment.

"Yes. The only problem is that I have my hands full with diplomatic stuff right now. I don't really have the time to start the whole organizing." Kakashi scratched the back of his neck.

"Don't worry, if you give me the funds and the authority, I'll do _everything_."

Kakashi considered the remaining options, but this one seemed to be the best one. "All right. But you'll still need to show me more important documents."

"Of course, dear husband." Sakura grinned happily. "I have things to arrange, so I'll go now." Her pink strands floated in the air for a split of a second, the smell of vanilla hitting his nose as she practically jumped up from her seat. "I'll give you the detailed information about the hospital by the end of the week." These were the final words he heard her say before leaving his office.

Kakashi chuckled, resuming his work. The air around him carried the vanilla scent long after the pink haired woman left.

….

Sakura didn't waste even one second after getting Kakashi's blessing. She quickly wrote a letter to Shizune, asking the older woman to help her in training the future nurses and doctors of the new hospital. Kurenai was asked to find people who would recruit the new staff from around the kingdom. But one of the most important tasks had yet to be completed. Sakura had to find a proper lot or building that could house a hospital. Together with Keiko they searched for all kinds of blueprints and such.

"I think the old academy dorm would be good. It has the proper infrastructure and it can even be expanded if needed." Sakura looked at the teen triumphantly. "Of course it needs renovation and slight modification, but this is the best option we have so far."

"This is wonderful, Your Majesty." Keiko beamed.

Kurenai entered the room a few heartbeats later, holding an envelope in her right hand. "This came just recently, Your Majesty. It's from Kato-san." Sakura practically snatched away the piece of parchment from her grasp, almost tearing it in half. She broke the red wax seal, her green eyes scanning the neatly written lines in a hurry.

_Dear Sakura,_

_I'll be in Konoha by the end of next week, would be there sooner but I still have to find a substitute for myself at the hospital. Can't wait to start!_

_Looking forward to seeing you again,_

_Shizune_

"Shizune is coming!" She said happily to the two women in front of her.

Finally it seemed like everything was on the right tracks, and most importantly, she found her drive.

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I imagined that since Tsunade was living in Uzushiogakure, the health care of the Land of Fire would be disastrous, since in the original series she's the one who kick starts everything in Konoha.


	14. Progress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "No. I would absolutely not travel on that thing." Sakura tried to be as confident as she could, but the slight waver of her voice didn't seem to deliver her message the way she wanted to.
> 
> "Don't worry, it's entirely safe."

The silver haired king of the Land of Fire sat hunched over his desk, the reading lamp on the mahogany surface enveloping his surroundings in an island of light in a sea of darkness. One tired grey eye looked at the clock mounted on the wall, noting that Saturday has ended one hour ago. Kakashi felt really tired, but he still had to finish proofreading a huge stack of documents.

Had someone told him five years ago that he'll be the king of his home country; he would've laughed in their face. Kakashi was never interested in being a leader of any kind. Sure, he somehow ended up being the leader of the Royal Army, but he didn't have much responsibility as one would think. He had to devise all kinds of military strategies, but the king had his final say in these matters. Leading an army wasn't that big of a deal anyway, he long learned that he couldn't save everyone no matter how hard he tried to do so. However this didn't stop him from lamenting after returning home from a military campaign that was bloodier than usual. His responsibility ended here. It wasn't his duty to worry about maintaining the always delicate balance between the population and the amount of crops. Or to worry about keeping an amicable diplomatic relationship with a neighbouring country. And he wasn't burdened by an entire nation to marry a woman with an acceptable family line and produce numerous offspring. Hell, he never even had plans of marriage before becoming king.

So when he got asked to be king, he immediately said no. He didn't want such kind of responsibilities thrown at him. And he most certainly did not need them in his life. But then he remembered Obito, the first person on this planet who he could call a friend. Obito's dream was to become king one day in order to prove to everybody his worth and also to help others. Kakashi felt that if he declined this offer, he would affront in a way his dead friend's memory. In the end his conscience made the decision and he became king.

By the time he finished reading, it was already two in the morning, his dark eyes felt heavy with fatigue and Kakashi was glad that he finally done his work before passing out from exhaustion. He yawned, his jaw threatening to dislocate while stretching in his chair.

The dark corridors were empty sans his lonely figure. Normally, all corridors and even some vacant rooms would've been lit during the whole night, but Kakashi thought that using so much energy for something so unnecessary was a crime. The only reason why they did so in the first place was in order to show how representative the palace was to the citizens and visitors of Konoha. Since the building was situated on a hill, it could be seen even from the furthest corner of the capital. And by illuminating the whole façade during the dark hours of the day, it dominated the city even at night. Unfortunately, Kakashi wasn't the kind of person who took much importance for such superficial things, so the only halls that bathed in light were the ones used by the sentry and the night shift of the servants.

His eyes wandered to the illuminated windows of the archives that could be seen from his position on the corridor. He didn't have to be a genius to know that Sakura was the person inside the room. Kakashi had a quite interesting talk with Kurenai the other day, the woman complaining about how Sakura practically moved inside the archives, staying late and returning in the early hours of the morning. Or at least that's what the older woman saw, but she was fairly sure that the pink haired woman slept there, if she even permitted herself such kind of luxury.

At first Kakashi didn't concern himself with her well being. He thought that this whole thing would last a day or two, and she'll eventually knock herself out due to fatigue, maybe even quit the project. Not to mention that she would be fairly annoyed by the fact that he stuck his nose in her business. But this whole conversation with Kurenai was a week ago, and it didn't seem like Sakura's vigour subsided.

He started walking towards the wing where the archives were situated. By the time he was standing in front of the double winged door, he completely regretted his decision. But since he already took a detour in order to be here, he might as well enter. The door creaked as it was pushed open, the sound being louder than usual due to the silence of the night.

Pink strands of hair were splayed against white paper, as Sakura rested her head against the surface of the table she was sitting at. He stood only a few steps away from her, his shadow casting over her. As if sensing that she was being watched Sakura stirred, sitting up. Her tired eyes looked to the side, her gaze meeting with Kakashi's.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was still heavy with fatigue.

"I was just passing by and thought that I'll see what you are up to."

"Oh…" Sakura flicked her left wrist, looking at her watch. "Have you been working until now?"

"Yeah. I had some urgent paperwork to finish." His reply honestly surprised her still half asleep mind. Kakashi didn't seem like the kind of person who would work until the wee hours of the morning. She rubbed her eyes with her left hand's thumb and index finger, trying to rid herself of sleepiness.

"When was the last time you slept in your own bed?" Kakashi tilted his head to the side. The question was probably far too direct, but this was the main reason why he visited her.

The motive behind his question was pretty obvious for her. Someone (probably Kurenai) told him that she worked a little bit much, which by the way was an overstatement. Sakura liked to finish her work in one go, which usually seemed to be too much for other people. But hell, she liked this method and she won't change it because someone disapproved. Besides, she began her work like two days ago, so their worry was totally unwarranted.

"Um…" Sakura looked thoughtfully at the ceiling, trying to recall. "Monday." Ha, that was only two days ago, so she proved him wrong!

"Oh." The pink haired woman was already bracing herself for his apology. Should she accept it immediately, or mock him a bit? After all, he always liked to rile her up nowadays, so it would be quite fair of her to-

"It's already Sunday, and correct me if I'm wrong, but that was almost a week ago, six days to be precise." The way he crinkled that one visible eye annoyed her to no extent.

"So what?" She shrugged, trying to remove the wrinkles from the papers she slept on.

"This isn't healthy, Sakura." The soft undertone to his voice surprised her, but she had to stand her ground.

"I believe that as a medic, and a fairly good one if I may add, I have the capability of deciding what's healthy for my body and what's not."

"And your opinion is completely objective." She nodded a yes as a respond, and then resumed her work. "How about we make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?"

"You take Sunday and Monday off, if you do that I won't bother you about your work for the time being."

"For the time being?" She furrowed her brow.

"As long as you won't overexert yourself."

"I'm not over-"

"Either that or I will ban you from the archives and the library."

"You wouldn't…" The challenging look in his visible eye made her trail off. That bastard!

Ten minutes later she was in her bed, but was too furious at her dear husband to actually fall asleep. Sure, it was somehow flattering to have someone look out for you, but it did matter who was that person. And her resentment, though not that strong as in the beginning, towards him just wouldn't let her fully appreciate this small gest from him.

…

She woke up to Keiko calling her name. She yawned and stretched before asking the young girl for the reason why she interrupted her blissful sleep.

"I'm really sorry for waking you up, but His Majesty would like to talk to you."

"Then let him in."

Kakashi entered a few minutes later, still dressed in his pajamas and it looked like he woke up not too long ago.

"I'd like to show you something." He stated simply, earning a strange look from her.

"Um…what is it exactly that you want to show me?"

"I just realized that you barely saw anything outside this palace."

"And?" She was starting to guess the direction this conversation was going.

"I want to change that. Can you get ready in 30 minutes?"

"And what if I don't want to get ready?" Sakura folded her arms under her chest.

"Then you'll miss a never returning opportunity. And you'll regret it." He crinkled his eye, his hands in his pockets.

"What kind of opportunity?"

"You'll see." The smug smirk on his face annoyed her to no end. "Be sure to wear something comfortable."

"I'm not going!" She shouted as he left the room.

Why the hell should she go? She had to rest today; at least that's what he told her to do. And now, at 10 in the morning he wakes her up and practically forces her to go on some trip with him. Does this man ever think? At least that's the impression he's giving her. No, Haruno…err…Hatake Sakura will stay in bed for the rest of the day, even if her butt will hurt because of it. She won't set a foot outside the threshold of her room. No.

…

He felt a strange sensation in the back of his neck. It wasn't like an itch, but it didn't hurt either. As Kakashi looked behind, he saw that his companion was glaring really intensely at him. Ah, so that's what he felt.

"I don't want to sound like a whiny kid, but which part of this is me having a rest?" She asked.

"Sometimes psychological rest is more helpful than physical rest." He responded sagely, receiving a snort from her.

Sakura took in her surroundings, keeping in mind to watch her steps; the uneven path was filled with tree roots. She never saw trees this tall in her life, but then again, Whirlpool was never famous for its lush forests. The island's vegetation consisted mostly of dwarf trees, and only the palace and a few civilian gardens had trees tall enough that could be climbed. These forests though were a different story… Sakura felt so tiny compared to their towering heights, and she started feeling dizzier the more she looked up at them.

Even though she was too stubborn to admit, she really enjoyed their hiking. The terrain wasn't that hard, even if they were walking uphill. The air was clean; the rays of the sun that reached them were warm and the sound of the birds chirping made her smile.

"Do you often come here?" She asked, holding both straps of her backpack.

"Not as frequently as I would like to." He slowed his pace, so that they could walk side by side. "In my early military years I patrolled this area frequently. That's how I came to like this place."

They came to a stop once they reached a tree that had a staircase wrapped around its trunk. She couldn't see the top of them, because the leaves hid them from her.

"What's this?" The pink haired woman asked after some silence. She had a hunch that they are going to climb those stairs, and it unnerved her.

"There's a zip line at the top, it's used by the military units that patrol the perimeter of Konoha and the boarders of the country." He explained while he climbed a few steps. Kakashi stopped after he noticed that she wasn't following him.

"And you want to go up?" It took all of her might not to talk with a shaking voice.

"Yes. Trust me, you won't regret it." He crinkled his eye at her.

"That's so reassuring."

"If you won't come with me, then you'll have to go back on your own. I hope that you remember which way we came from." Kakashi stated nonchalantly, resuming his ascend.

Sakura looked back at the trail they came from; trying to remember each and every turn they took during their trip. It couldn't be that hard, right? But then what if she gets lost? And then she'll wander around for God knows how long, and will have to collect berries and eat ants and other insects in order to survive. By the time, if ever, they find her she'll lose all human qualities and-

"That's ridiculous." She chastised herself, but followed him nonetheless, her main reason being that a walk back alone would be really boring.

Sakura was never fond of heights and could feel uneasiness rising in her stomach the higher they got, so when they finally reached the top, she couldn't be happy enough.

"Here." Kakashi handed her a harness but she just stared at his outstretched hand. Everything clicked into place that moment, and she felt really stupid that it didn't occur to her sooner. He wanted to try out the zip line.

"No. I would absolutely _not_ travel on that thing." Sakura tried to be as confident as she could, but the slight waver of her voice didn't seem to deliver her message the way she wanted to.

"Don't worry, it's entirely safe."

"I beg to differ. How can that puny little wire be called safe?" Her head replayed a dozen scenarios in which she died because the so called 'safe' wire snapped and she fell to her death. "Is this how you want to murder me?"

"Of course." Kakashi replied in a bored tone, putting on his harness and connecting it to the wire. "You are aware that if you won't come with me, you'll have to go back alone?" She puffed out her cheeks in frustration, her hatred towards him growing even more.

Sakura put on the harness, fastening it, so that it hugged her hips and thighs. Kakashi attached her harness to his, so that she was in front of him, practically sitting on his lap. His close proximity felt really strange, this was the first time they were so close to each other. In a certain way it felt nice, but she refused to elaborate her feelings and thoughts about this whole situation, after all, she was about to die!

He launched them and instead of falling to their deaths as she expected, they moved with great velocity. The feel of her feet dangling in the air, with nothing to support it from beneath terrified her. They rushed past branches, causing several leaves to fall off of them. The cool air that hit her face tickled her nose but it felt really good at the same time.

After a few seconds her sense of terror disappeared and it got replaced by one of exhilaration. The rush of air against her exposed skin, and the feeling of nothingness under her feet made her feel free. She never felt like this before in her life.

…

He wanted to show her something special, hoping that by doing this she'll come to love her new home. And most certainly he wanted to show her one of his favorite places. Hearing her not so delighted remarks during their trip worried him, and in a certain way even annoyed him.

Sure, it was really absurd of him to force her to rest and then takes her hiking the other day, but he felt like they both needed this trip. He knew that she spent most of her time inside the palace, only leaving it once in a while, and even then she went to the gardens. It must have felt suffocating for her to be confined behind walls. And with his desk being filled with paperwork, he left the palace rarely in these days as well.

It took him some time to persuade Genma on letting them leave the building without guards, but hearing her laughter as they stormed past trees made it all worth it. He didn't want to seem like a love-struck teenager with this remark, but it did make him happy hearing her laughter. He finally caused her happiness, not just misery and animosity.

"Look to your left." He told her, as the density of the trees changed, making the palace and some other buildings of Konoha visible to them from the distance.

"It's so pretty!"

Their journey came to an end when they reached the top of a hill. He unfastened their harnesses and helped Sakura regain her balance.

"I hate to say it, but this was…I can't even find a word to describe." Sakura chuckled. "Nice."

"I'm glad you liked it." He smiled underneath his mask.

" _So, maybe this whole journey wasn't that bad at all."_ Sakura mused,glad that she had the courage to try out the zip line.

It was already lunch time when they arrived back to the palace, both of them feeling hungry to say the least.

"We should go again some time. I feel completely energized." She smiled as they walked towards the dining room.

"Sure." Kakashi nodded, enjoying her happiness. The pink haired woman walked with a spring in her step, something he never saw her do before.

Yes, they were definitely heading towards a normal relationship.

* * *

 


	15. Obstacle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She spread her arms, turning around in front of him. "As you can see, I'm perfectly fine, not even a scratch."
> 
> "I can see that." He looked her over with a wolfish grin. The woman could still improve on her closet, but at least the trousers showed her really nice butt. "But it is still my job to make sure, that nothing would happen to you in the future."

Dark eyes looked with disgust from afar at the pink haired woman who sat on a stone bench inside the garden. She was reading some kind of book, completely oblivious of the person's hateful gaze from the window behind her back.

The person couldn't even count on their two hands the reasons why they felt such negative emotions towards this…this _girl_. At the age of twenty, Haruno…no, Hatake Sakura couldn't even be called a woman yet. So who in their right mind had the brilliant idea of actually crowning her as the queen of one of the most powerful countries on the continent? It was absolutely ridiculous.

She wasn't even the descendant of a _truly_ noble lineage. The two big clans of the Land of Whirlpools were the Uzumaki and the Senju, the current and former rulers of the small country were descendants of Senju Hashirama and Uzumaki Mito. Henceforth, only the members of these two families could become leaders of the kingdom. The Haruno clan was a side branch of the Uzumaki, but they became so distant from one another during these centuries, that they became a whole other clan in the end. And whilst the Uzumaki's were idolized by the occupants of the small island, the Haruno's became an ordinary family; they couldn't even be considered nobles. Their wealth wasn't vast, but they were still situated above average.

Hatake Sakura's father was the youngest nephew of the clan head and when the time came, instead of choosing the daughter of a noble clan, he wed a shop owner's daughter. Haruno Kizashi became a diplomat, often leaving the island country in order to strengthen or establish diplomatic relations with other nations. After a series of unfortunate events Haruno Sakura became an orphan, but because of her father's good relationship with the queen, she adopted her soon after.

After the adoption, the girl became royalty and because of her kindness the people of the country loved her. They even forgot or ignored the fact that she didn't have royal blood in her veins. Fools.

…

Kakashi looked at the clock on his office's wall, noting with delight that lunch would be served in half an hour. After his trip with Sakura almost a week ago, their relationship changed. For the better. She wasn't as hostile towards him as before, and they both tried to share at least one meal each day. And what was probably the best aspect of their meetings: they talked. Sure, they didn't talk about really serious things, but even a small talk could be considered a huge advancement in their case.

He stopped his writing when someone knocked briefly on his office's door. It must've been Sakura, maybe she came to tell him that she finished with her work.

"Come in." He said, putting away his pen and organizing the stack of papers in front of him.

"Your Majesty." To his disappointment the person who entered wasn't Sakura, it was a much older and uglier woman. Koharu.

"Koharu-san. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Your Majesty, there are a few issues that need to be urgently discussed."

"Yes?"

"According to my information, your marriage has yet to be consummated." The woman said, with a hard look on her face, Kakashi's eye narrowed. This was definitely not something that he wanted to discuss with the old hag.

"I believe that this is something you shouldn't be concerned about."

"And I believe that I should be-"

"It's none of your business!" Kakashi raised his voice, startling the woman.

"None of my business? You forgot that as a king, you have certain obligations towards the Council and the nation. It is _our_ duty to make sure that you'll have an heir."

"Heir? First, you talk about me taking her innocence away, and now about making her bear my offspring? She's just a _child_!" It took all of his willpower not to shout.

Koharu didn't seem to care about his state as she continued on. "She's not a child anymore; she's a _woman_ and your _wife_."

"I'm not some kind of monster, who'll force himself on her. I might as well rape her while I'm at it, don't you think?"

" _You_ need an heir. _This_ country needs an heir. If you die without one, then the whole ordeal we had after the Uchiha massacre will be repeated. And to be honest, _I_ don't want that to happen, and _you_ shouldn't want that as well."

"I don't care." He gritted out.

"What?"

"I believe that you heard me crystal clearly." He stood up, having enough of this ridiculous conversation. "Now, lunch is about to be served, so I have to leave now."

"This problem cannot be ignored, Your Majesty." The woman glared at him.

"It most definitely can. Look and learn." He left the room with an eye crinkle.

Here goes his plan of having a nice day without stress and anger. The old bat always had a knack for bringing out the worst qualities of a human being. In these times when Kakashi regretted not having any power over choosing who the members of the Council were. Not to mention, that the title was for life, and the members were only changed if they committed felony or something else that damaged the country's power and prestige.

Much to his disappointment, the dining room was empty. Sakura always arrived earlier than him, though that wasn't saying much. He instantly noticed that the table was set for only one person, which meant…

…

A paint can almost hit Sakura in the head, its white contents spilling on the tiled floor. Had it not been for her good reflexes, she'd have passed out for God knows how long. She looked up at the sheepish looking painter and sent him a murderous look, being far too busy to even start arguing with him about work safety.

With the grand opening day of the hospital getting closer with each passing minute, saying that the building was in chaos was an understatement. The majority of the supplies had yet to arrive, not to mention that renovation wasn't even half done. Had it not been for Shizune's help, the pink haired woman would've already gone insane.

She quickly pulled out her to do list from her pocket. Sakura resisted a groan when she saw the amount of work she still had to do. She's been running around since 7 in the morning, and it seemed like she barely put a dent in her chores. Her stomach started to grumble, reminding her that she hardly ate anything since the morning, and it was well past lunch time. She brought some food with her when she left the palace, and even told the cooks that she won't be returning for lunch. The food was on her desk, in her office, but since she had a meeting in 10 minutes, she opted on leaving it for later.

The news of a hospital opening in Konoha spread like wildfire throughout the country, catching the attention of many people. It was good, since in a matter of days they had hundreds of recruits to choose from. But as everything, this had a throwback as well: the so called healers of the country got worried, they were afraid that they would lose their clients and go out of business. So, as seemingly everything nowadays, they had a syndicate, which pretty much demanded an audition from her. She was already preparing herself for a pretty nasty argument with them.

Three middle aged men were waiting for her inside a reasonably renovated and furnished room. Though they showed her their obligatory respect, it was obvious from the look in their eyes, that they were not pleased with her.

"I'm really sorry, but I only have a limited amount of time. I believe your reasons for our meeting have not changed."

"No, Your Majesty." Tachibana, the president of the syndicate spoke up.

"Gentlemen, I can assure you, that you won't go out of business with the opening of the hospital. Your clients have always been the rich, while this institute would mainly focus on the average citizens."

"There's no guarantee that our current clients won't turn to your…" It seemed like he was carefully choosing his next words. "…services."

The way he acted and spoke his words angered her. It seemed like he viewed the hospital and its future employees a nuisance. Like the form of medicine she represented could be considered inferior to what they, the great healers of the Land of Fire could offer. Just because they've been in business for decades and managed to cure a mere cold here and there did not mean anything in her eyes. These people only cared about the rich and their money, and now that they might lose their job, because a new, more efficient way of healing surfaced in their country, they became worried.

"I'm sorry, but I do not understand your concern about this. If your clients are not satisfied with your services, then it's natural that they would want to use better ones." The three men looked at her like she grew a second head. It seemed like they were not used to people speaking up to them.

"Hundreds of people would lose their job, if this hospital opens."

"Yes, and it'll save thousands. Look, Tachibana-san I already proposed a training program for you. Your help in building this new healthcare program would be invaluable."

"I'm sorry, but we cannot give up our traditions." The man straightened in his seat, raising his chin.

"Then I can't help you." Sakura pushed her chair backwards, preparing to leave.

"You can't just leave us like this." The older man raised his voice slightly.

"I'm not leaving you like this, Tachibana-san. I offered you a solution, but you refused to accept. I understand that it is really hard to change methods that are so embedded in one's profession, but sometimes progress is the only way of survival." The calmness in her voice surprised her. Right now Sakura wanted nothing else than to smack their faces. "I'll give you a week to reconsider my proposal. See you later."

With that, she stormed out of the room, leaving the three men behind. Sakura patted herself on the shoulder for how civil and calm she showed herself to be. Though she was head of the biggest hospital in the country back in Whirlpool, she never had to attend meetings with people like Tachibana. Her generation has already gotten used to the new ways of medicine. But, Tsunade a few decades ago was in the same shoes as her right now. It took the blonde years to make people comfortable with using the new, more effective methods and leave the old, much harmful ones behind. She prayed that these people were more open.

…

Shizune was in the midst of explaining the different steps of processing blood samples to the future nurses of the hospital, when she heard a giggle from someone in her audience. Though it was barely discernible, her sharp ears caught it immediately. Two of the new nurses were whispering something to each other, while looking out the window facing the hallway.

She followed their line of vision, her annoyance intensifying tenfold. There, on the hallway, leaning against a wall was standing Shiranui Genma. He had his hands in his pockets, the senbon lazily hanging in his mouth. Their eyes met in that exact second, Genma sending her a wink. The two girls emitted another giggle, further annoying the older woman.

"I'll give you ten minutes of break." The brunette stormed out from the room, stopping in front of the man. "Shiranui-san, can we have a talk?"

"Of course, Kato-san." He smirked, following her. Since most of the rooms were being painted or furnished, she took him to the roof.

"I would really appreciate if you wouldn't follow me around, Shiranui-san." She stated calmly, trying not to say anything harsh.

"I've been asked personally by His Majesty to make sure that you are safe."

She spread her arms, turning around in front of him. "As you can see, I'm perfectly fine, not even a scratch."

"I can see that." He looked her over with a wolfish grin. The woman could still improve on her closet, but at least the trousers showed her really nice butt. "But it is still my job to make sure, that nothing would happen to you in the future."

"Oh, and the captain of the Royal Guard is ensuring my safety. What an honor." The sarcasm in her voice could be hardly ignored.

"Yes, it is."

"Look, Shiranui-san, I really appreciate your work and all, but you are seriously distracting my students with your presence."

"Really?" He chuckled. "Well, I'm not surprised at all." It seriously surprised Shizune that his already big ego could grow even more.

"As I mentioned a few weeks before, I can protect myself, so your services are not needed."

He looked her over once again, trying not to laugh at what she said. The woman was so petite, that he was sure her arms could break the moment someone grabbed her arm with a bit more force than usual. Heck, she didn't even reach up to his chin!

"I highly doubt that." His words and that complacent look on his face sealed the deal for Shizune.

It all happened so fast. She threw the man over her shoulder, and onto the floor in the split of a second. His yelp, which was probably as manly as a newborn could manage, was most certainly the highlight of her day. And no, she wasn't a sadist. It's just that frustration always brought out her bad side.

"As you can see Shiranui-san, I can perfectly take care of myself." Shizune stated breezily, looking at the gawking man. "And if you have any more doubts, I can surely further demonstrate my capability."

The creepy smile on her face made him gulp. _Gulp._ Like honestly, the last time he felt so petrified by a woman was in elementary school, and that was only because his teacher always spanked him for flying paper planes during class. The brunette flicked her wrist, looking at her watch.

"As much as I'd _love_ to continue our conversation, I have to go now." She turned on her heels and left him, still laying on the floor. Genma was livid. He's never been treated like this by a woman in a looooong time.

If the damn woman wants war, then she might as well get it.

 

 


	16. Thunders and Stories Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “By the time they arrive, there will be no one to help.” Kushina hissed, walking towards the two children. “We go now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! It's been more than a year since I updated this story, and for that, I would like to say sorry. I can't really blame it on my life being hectic and all because I still updated my other story during that time. The motive why I neglected It Is What It Is was because this very chapter gave me writer's block. I had a clear outline of it since the beginning, but writing it down was harder than I thought...so I avoided it like the plague and managed to write several future chapters completely, while this one remained half finished. I rewrote this countless times, but it never managed to satisfy my expectations... even now it is lacking in many aspects, but I have to accept the fact that as of now I cannot write a better version. So, not wanting to abandon this story completely, and seeing that people were still reading this story, I decided to finally post it. This is only half of the chapter since it turned out to be disproportionately longer than the other chapters I decided to split it into two parts. Hopefully, I wouldn't disappoint you guys that much with it...
> 
> So, without further ado, here's chapter 16!

She woke up with a start. Her delicate neck emitted a crack and then searing pain shot through her spinal cord. Yes, having a nap on her desk inside her room wasn't such a good idea. Sakura started massaging her neck, trying to dull the ache. Looking behind her back, her eyes grew even heavier at the sight of the bed, only waiting for her.

"I should really go to bed." She yawned while organizing the scattered papers around her. The dimness around her suddenly faded, light engulfing the entire room, then everything went back to normal but not before a booming sound filled her ears. Sakura shrieked, covering them in a blink of an eye. The papers she was holding fell down on the floor, though she didn't register it happening.

"No. No. No. No."

Images of a long forgotten past flashed before her closed eyes.

_Her lungs were screaming for her to stop, each intake of precious air feeling like hundreds of blades piercing her chest. But she couldn't stop. No. She promised them that she won't. But she felt so tired, her legs shook on the uneven terrain and she prayed not to lose her footing. She could hear_ him _running after her, catching up to her. The tears slid down her cheeks more intensely. He's going to catch her!_

"I have to get out of here." She whispered trying to stand up from her seat. She needed to find a place where the lightning and thunder couldn't find her. Where she couldn't see or hear them.

The lights flickered once again, then with a huge bang that even made the room's windows tremble, the lights went completely out. Her knees felt like jelly, her shaking hands tried to uphold her by grabbing onto the edges of the desk, but it was futile. It was like all energy left her. Sakura fell on her knees, her forehead almost colliding with the side of the desk. By the time she realized what she was doing, the pink haired woman was already sitting under the piece of furniture, her knees against her chest and her shaky hands covering her ears.

She emitted another scream the moment the thunders returned, her hands not muffling the noise even the slightest. The intervals between the rumbles decreased and at some point, it seemed like they were continuous.

Sakura looked at the enormous windows across from her. She tried to calm herself down by trying to listen to the sound of rain, but it was futile. The booming was far too frequent and loud, it was practically impossible for her to use her usual methods.

The lightning illuminated a shadowy figure on the other side of the window, standing on her balcony. He looked like…

No…it couldn't be…

She started screaming for help the moment he entered, her throat becoming sore in the span of seconds.

"Sakura! Sakura, it's me." The deep masculine voice was so familiar, it took her a few heartbeats to register that the person wasn't _him_ , only just Kakashi.

"Are you hurt? What happened?" His voice was filled with concern.

"I'm…" She cried out once again as the thunders continued on. Kakashi climbed under the table and wrapped an arm around her waist. She buried her head in his chest, jumping slightly whenever the thunders came back.

"It's okay." He said, rubbing her back in slow circles.

She didn't know how much time passed before the storm calmed down, but it seemed like time moved at a snail's pace. The only thing she tried to pay attention to was the movement of Kakashi's hand on her back, it soothed her, muting the storm. For the first time in her life, she got comforted, someone held her when she was crying because of fear.

"It's over." Sakura whispered after the thunders didn't return. She still had her face buried in his shirt, which was probably soaked with her tears and snot. Great, another addition to her already long list of personal embarrassment.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She heard him ask eventually. The way he said was casual, Kakashi didn't want to pressure her to open up. She straightened herself, looking at him with her tear cloaked eyes. The lights inside her room were on, truly signaling that the storm was long gone.

As her vision slowly cleared up, Kakashi's awkward position next to her became obvious. To be honest, he looked quite funny under the table. His gravity-defying hair was squished against the top of the desk, and with him being so tall he had to slightly tilt his head in order to fit under the furniture. Kakashi's posture looked quite uncomfortable.

"Do you want to…um…go somewhere else?" She offered.

"No, we can stay here. I quite like it actually." He crinkled his visible eye.

Humming, she leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes in the process. The woman took in a shaky breath as the dam that kept all memories at bay came crumbling down. The images flashed before her eyes, like a strip of a film.

"Naruto's parents and mine were longtime friends…that's why he and I are so close, we practically grew up together." Her voice was so faint, so uncharacteristic. "We usually spent our summer vacation together, and in that year we went to Thunder. There was this small resort in the mountains…with a lake and forests."

She could remember the smell of the pine trees, see the way how the surface of the lake shone in the sunlight, the confusion both her and Naruto felt once they found out that the lake's water was not salty but sweet.

It all happened on their second night there…

They were already finished with dinner, Kushina and Mebuki washing the dishes, while Minato and Kizashi made sure that the impending storm wouldn't make any damage to the cabin they stayed at. Sakura and Naruto were playing shogi and were arguing the whole time about who was cheating or not.

"I saw you move the piece!" She pointed her finger at him, green eyes narrowing.

"I didn't Sakura-chan!"

"I'm going to hurt you if I catch you once more!"

"Fine!" The blonde folded his arms on his chest, looking to the side.

They eventually went back to play, only stopping when their mothers brought a mug of warm cocoa to each of them.

"I wonder what is taking them so long." Kushina mused, going to the nearby window, shoving aside the thin curtain to look out.

"Knowing Kizashi, they probably sat down somewhere and started reminiscing about old times." Sakura's mother chuckled.

The redhead looked at her wristwatch. "It's starting to get late. I'll check up on them." The front door clicked with a shut once she left the cabin.

"Sakura-chan, you should prepare for bed." Mebuki played with her daughter's pink tresses. "We are getting up early tomorrow."

"Just one more round, please."

Sighing, she leaned down and kissed the crown of her head. "Fine, but only one." Mebuki collected the now empty mugs from the nearby table, walking back to the kitchen.

Sakura moved a piece on the board, earning a groan from her opponent. She smirked, knowing far too well that it would be really hard for Naruto to find a way to turn the impending finale of their game in his favor. She looked to the side, staring out the window not far away from where they were sitting at. The sound of the wind picking up could be heard clearly. The wooden structure of the cabin groaned, frightening her. Hopefully, the house won't collapse tonight.

She sensed movement from the corner of her eye, her gaze fixating on the glass pane once again. It was only probably a branch or a twig, she shrugged. A faint voice in the back of her head pointed out, that there were no trees in the close proximity of the window. That the movement was way too fast for it being only a mere twig falling down. But Haruno Sakura dismissed these thoughts and looked back at Naruto, who was in deep concentration, she was quite sure that he'll yield soon.

The sound of the front door opening and closing could be heard. It sure took aunt Kushina some time to find their fathers. Those two had the tendency to disappear after meals and talk about all kinds of stuff in the company of a few beers, tonight was most certainly one of these occasions.

Her breath caught in her throat and she completely forgot what she wanted to say. Kushina had her back against the door, skin blindingly pale, eyes wide with silent tears. Something was wrong…something was extremely wrong.

"Where's Kizashi and Minato?" Her mother emerged from the kitchen, drying her hands with a towel.

"They…" Kushina's voice was strained.

"They what?" Her mother seemed to be unnerved as well, impatience radiating off of her. Mebuki was already moving towards the door, but Kushina stopped her midway.

"Don't." The other woman shook her head furiously, her red hair falling into complete disarray. In that moment she looked like a madwoman.

"Let me out."

"You can't…all that blood…you can't!"

"What's the matter, mom?" Both children got frightened by the scene unfolding in front of them.

"We have to get out of here." Kushina ignored her son's question, grabbing Mebuki's forearms.

"But why?" Sakura finally found her voice and addressed the older woman.

They all let out a shriek when the electricity in the cabin went out, leaving them in complete darkness.

"We have to get out of here." The redhead's voice was even more urgent. Sakura could see the silhouette of the two older women once her sight adjusted to the darkness around them.

"We should call the police, maybe they could help." Her mother reasoned out of the blue.

"By the time they arrive, there will be no one to help." Kushina hissed, walking towards the two children. "We go _now_." She grabbed both children's arms and pulled them up from their seat. "Come on."

Having enough of not knowing what was happening around them, Sakura didn't budge even a single inch. "What's going on? Where's dad and uncle Minato? Why do we have to leave?" The girl tried to free her hand from the older woman's iron grip unsuccessfully. A pregnant pause followed her string of questions, making her more anxious.

"They are dead." Kushina whispered. Sakura felt all the air leaving her lungs, like someone kicked her hard in the chest. All her limbs felt like they weighted tons and she was unable to say or to even think anything.

"What?" She barely heard Naruto's question.

"I…I found them outside…all that blood…so much blood." Kushina's voice broke and she started wailing, followed by Naruto's own cries of sorrow.

A pair of hands engulfed the pink haired girl in a bone-crushing hug. She didn't have to see in the dark to know that the person was her mother; she could recognize this hug from hundreds of others.

"It's going to be okay. I promise that everything's going to be all right." Mebuki whispered. The calmness her mother sported completely surprised Sakura, either the fact hadn't sunk in completely or the woman just wanted to be strong for her daughter. Whichever was true, Sakura felt enormous gratitude towards her mother in that moment. She was already starting to freak out just by seeing how hysteric Kushina was.

The sound of glass shattering could be heard from upstairs, while the doorknob of the front entrance started rotating furiously.

"They are here." Mebuki whispered, letting go of her daughter. "Quick, barricade the entrance." She was already moving towards one of the armchairs, pushing it against the door. Sakura and Naruto followed suit, pushing a small drawer right next to it.

"How are we going to get out of here, if we blocked the entrance?" Tendrils of panic started capturing Sakura's whole being.

They started looking around the now dark cabin, in desperate search of a way out. The windows were out of the question, since whoever was outside was most certainly waiting for them. There was just no way for them to escape, was it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think?
> 
> I would like to thank everyone who read, commented and gave kudos!
> 
> Part two will be posted tomorrow.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	17. Thunders and Stories Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The person moved away from her, keeping the sword still flush against her neck. She heard a scream from Naruto, but from her vantage point on the floor, she couldn't see what happened.

"Kushina, how fast can you run?" Mebuki asked.

"M…me? Why?"

"We don't know how many of them are out there, but it would be really unwise for us to run outside in one group. We have to split up."

"What? Mom!"

"That's our only chance…if we wait anymore, they'll try to break in and then we won't have any chance." The woman walked towards the kitchen, grabbing four knives from the stand on the top of the counter. "Kushina…we'll draw them out." She looked at the redhead, earning a gasp from the other woman.

"While they are chasing us, Sakura and Naruto will run towards the village." In that exact moment, the two women looked at each other, sharing an understanding look with each other.

Mebuki handed a knife to both children while explaining the details of the plan to them. As the time of their departure came closer by each second, the nauseating feeling of fear came back to Sakura at full force. The fact that her mother won't come with her made the preteen even more despaired.

"Sakura." Her mother grabbed her shoulders, the sternness in her voice evident. "You are going to leave this cabin."

"But I can't-"

"Yes, you can. Once you are out, take a turn to the left and run. No matter what happens, run. Don't stop and don't look back. The village shouldn't be too far away from here. Follow the stream and you'll get there." She repeated. "You will go and get help, promise me."

Sakura swallowed hard, trying to compose herself. "I promise. But what about you and aunt Kushina?" The pink haired girl's voice was strained; she desperately wanted to stop herself from crying.

Her mother hesitated for a while. "We will be right behind you, I promise." She kissed her daughter on the forehead, and then straightened up. "It's time."

Mebuki and Kushina walked towards the door, removing the furniture that blocked it while the two children hid behind the sofa. Mebuki reached for the latch and yanked the door open, the two women rushing outside, into the now pouring rain.

Sakura felt Naruto grabbing her hand, squeezing it so tightly that it was beginning to be uncomfortable, but she couldn't let herself be distracted. Her mother told her to count until 60 before they leave the cabin, in order to make sure that whoever was outside started pursuing the two women and not them.

The wooden door moved slowly as the wind blew inside the enclosed space, its creaking noise making both of them even more anxious. The seconds ticked by in an agonizingly slow pace. Sakura's closed eyes popped open once the sound of wet footsteps became distinguishable from the ones of the storm. They both heard the person slightly nudging the door open with their feet and stepping over the threshold. The wet and probably muddy boots made a squeaking sound against the floorboards of the cabin. The heavy footfalls most certainly didn't belong to any of their mothers.

Sakura didn't even dare to breathe, too afraid that whoever was inside would hear her. Their time for departure was imminent, yet both of them felt unable to move from their spot. What if the person catches them before they would come even close to escaping from here? Can they defend themselves against them? They killed both of their fathers with ease; they wouldn't even have a chance against whoever was here right now. But if they stay here even longer, the person would find them, there's no doubt about that, not to mention that they would waste the precious time their mothers granted for them.

Even though she felt like her whole body was cemented onto the spot she was crouching at, Sakura made her decision…the only decision that made any sense in this terrifying situation.

"Just 10 more seconds left." Sakura mouthed to the boy next to her, Naruto swallowed hard and nodded.

_10_

The steps became dangerously close to where they were hiding at.

_9_

Sakura's grip on the kitchen knife her mother handed her tightened.

_8_

They will be found for sure if the person gets any closer.

_7_

Should they leave now? No…if they act thoughtlessly, they might get caught. They have to wait for the person to get further away from them.

_6_

She felt Naruto tugging at their joined hands. The blonde wanted to stand up and probably run, but she yanked at his arm while shaking her head.

_5_

The person had no intention to change their path, walking straight towards their location.

_4_

The person suddenly stopped in their tracks, their wet shoes no longer making noise.

_3_

Both children let out a scream when a sword pierced through the backside of the sofa, the blade slightly grazing Sakura's right ear.

The sword retreated and the person jumped over the sofa, landing behind Naruto and Sakura. The pinkette straightened from her crouching position and yanked the boy to the left, avoiding another stab from the sword.

The distance between the couch and the door was only a few feet, but right now, as they rushed towards the exit, it seemed to be miles away. Sakura felt herself being pulled backward, the sudden movement making her arm twist in an unnatural way. She lost her balance and fell on the floor with a loud thud together with Naruto.

Her whole backside ached after its harsh contact with the floor, her lungs thirsty for air. The hand which was previously being held by Naruto was free now, while the other one still held the knife. She tried to sit up, but the feet of the person connected with her chest and pushed her back, her head colliding with the floorboards once more. The girl felt another surge of pain as those same boots contacted with her wrist, making her release the knife she was holding out of reflex. The object made a hissing sound as it slid away from her once the person kicked it.

Sakura would never forget the coolness of the metal that pressed against her throat. She could practically feel the sharpness of the blade, slowly cutting into her flesh, breaking the unmarred skin of her neck. While previously her lungs were begging her to refill them with oxygen, right now each and every part of her being pleaded her not to do so, like even such kind of movement would prove to be fatal.

The person moved away from her, keeping the sword still flush against her neck. She heard a scream from Naruto, but from her vantage point on the floor, she couldn't see what happened.

The girl slightly jumped when the booming sound of thunder shook the cabin. The sudden movements made the blade dig into her skin and draw blood. Lighting followed soon after, engulfing the room in light for a brief second. Even this short span of time was enough for Sakura to see their attacker. His red irises reflected the light, their cruelty making her blood run cold, while his towering height, especially from her position, made him even more menacing.

Each fiber of the girl's body was telling her not to do anything, to accept whatever fate waited for her. It was futile for her to even try to escape, seeing that the person above her was much bigger and tougher than she could've ever imagined. The sharp blade of the sword pressed against her with such force that Sakura was sure of it slicing her neck completely open in a few seconds. The preteen closed her eyes, preparing for the final moments of her life.

Just as another bout of thunder came, the sword got removed from her throat. The absence of the cool metal against her skin made her open her eyes in shock. She tentatively sat up, the lightning illuminating the inside of the cabin once more. Naruto has tackled their attacker, the boy trying to pin him down with little success.

The man was far too strong to be held down by a scrawny boy, but he didn't count on Naruto's resolve. Even though he was being punched in various parts of his body, the blond held onto the torso of the man with all his might.

Sakura felt ashamed in that moment, ashamed that she was ready to give up her life so easily. She was ready to waste the valuable chance their mothers gave them, to just wait for the man to slice her throat without any resistance. She foolishly offered her life to this person on a silver platter, like it didn't matter to her at all. She won't make the same mistake again.

Her green eyes started scanning the floor of the dark room, searching for the knife the man made her drop. The seconds ticked by fast and there was no sight of the weapon, while Naruto's grunts of pain became louder and more frequent. Desperate to find anything that she could use, her gaze landed on a wine bottle rack a few steps away from her. Her fingers wrapped around the neck of one of the bottles before rushing towards where Naruto and the man were still fighting.

Due to the darkness inside it was really hard for Sakura to discern which body part belonged to whom. The thunder and lightning that appeared once more brought her out of her stupor again. She brought the bottle down on the top of the man's head with all of her strength. The glass shattered once it connected with the person's skull, only the neck and upper half of the bottle remaining intact in her hand. He shouted out in pain but didn't lose consciousness. His hand grabbed her ankle and brought Sakura down onto the floor once more, the glass shards embedding themselves inside her calf and heel.

The pinkette refused to think about the pain that she felt, she had to concentrate on other things. She lashed out with the hand that was still holding the bottle fragment, stabbing the man wherever she could repeatedly. She was conscious of the fact that with each motion she was tearing through skin and muscles, drawing the blood of a human being, but she refused to contemplate on it. Right now her only priority was for her and Naruto to survive this encounter. He tried to fight her off, but it was hard for him to do so with Naruto still on his chest. When the man seemingly had barely enough power to fight back, Sakura decided that it was time for them to leave. She stabbed the man once more in the side, leaving the bottle in the wound.

The surge of pain she felt in her injured legs almost made her lose her balance once she managed to stand up. She took a shaky step forward, grabbing Naruto's hand.

"Naruto! Come!" She pulled him up to his feet and started dragging the boy with her towards the exit.

While she knew that they were far from being safe, Sakura felt vast relief once they stepped over the threshold of the cabin. A few minutes ago she was certain that she would die, but right now their future didn't seem so bleak as if their chances of surviving have grown greatly.

They both got drenched completely the moment they stepped outside, the harsh wind making them shiver. The earthen pathway alongside the cabin turned into mud, their bare feet sinking into it until their ankles. The stream their mothers told them to follow grew into a river, threatening to flood the cabin if the storm continued on.

The two of them ran as fast as they could, but the mud and wind were slowing them down, not to mention that they could barely see anything in the darkness of the forest. Sakura's lungs were practically pleading for her to stop, even for a few seconds. The burning feeling in her chest was a sharp contrast to the icy cold of her skin. They tripped countless times, branches grazed their exposed skin, but they didn't really register any of it. The promise they made to their mothers was what kept them going. By now the two preteens were sure that they'll not see their parents alive ever again. The raindrops that covered her face were soon joined by tears. She looked back as if trying to prove herself wrong like she was hoping that the two women would be running closely behind them.

The pinkette almost lost her footing when she saw that they were indeed being followed by someone. But this person wasn't her mother.

"He's following us!" She screamed to Naruto, urging him to run faster. The man was going to catch up to them!

He tackled the two of them from behind, making the preteens fall head first into the mud. Sakura's nose and mouth got filled with grime, making her gag at the taste of it. The man flipped her on her back, pinning her hands above her head. She tried to kick him, but he easily blocked the attacks.

"You little bitch." She heard him say. Lightning struck at that exact same moment, illuminating the man's face. She let out a scream upon seeing it, the feeling of nausea washing over her. The left side of his face barely had any skin left on it, shards of glass poking out and thin strips of skin hanging off at some parts of it.

She was fully aware of the fact that this was her handiwork, and that the man would most certainly retaliate. What disturbed her, even more, was the fact that he was still capable of running after them with so many stab wounds on his person. He was truly a monster.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto's voice was barely audible amidst the howling of the wind.

"Run Naruto! Find help!" She screamed, earning a slap from the man. The force of it made her head snap to the side, the entire left side of her face becoming numb. Even so, Sakura managed to scream again as loud as her vocal chords permitted. "Find help!"

Naruto must've listened to her plea since the man was about to run after him, but she grabbed his sides with her now free hands, using the momentum of his movement to flip them over. They tumbled down with great speed from the slope that separated the path from the stream, falling into the water.

Sakura tried to keep herself afloat, but the current of the river was far too great, and she felt herself being dragged to the bottom of it each time she tried to get back up. It didn't take her long to completely black out.

"We were lucky." Sakura opened her eyes, bringing herself back from the dark forest from almost ten years ago and into her bedroom in Konoha. "The river brought me to the village and some locals rescued me…Naruto arrived an hour later."

"The police searched the area for the culprits, but to no avail. They found our parents, though." She swallowed hard.

"It's okay…that's enough." Kakashi said softly, his grip around her tightening.

"It took them almost a month to find mother and aunt Kushina…in an area which was in the completely opposite direction to the village. They protected us until the very end…" A harsh sob left her. "Mother knew from the very beginning that they won't make it."

She buried her face in Kakashi's chest again, crying like never before.


	18. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amused, Sakura rested her chin on her palm. "You like him." She stated simply, earning the woman sitting in front of her to choke on her saliva.

The shrilling sound of the alarm clock made both of them jump. Kakashi let out a string of really colorful words after hitting his head in the top of the table.

"Are you okay?" She asked immediately, all traces of sleepiness disappearing from her eyes. Her fingers started searching for any kind of injury on his head, brushing away his surprisingly soft hair.

"Yeah." He muttered, watching her from the corner of his eye.

"I don't think that it's anything serious. We shouldn't have fallen asleep here." She shook her head.

"I don't mind it." Kakashi turned his head so that he was facing her. She was still holding a fistful of his hair, but her fingers stilled.

He was surprisingly close right now. It was something that felt really comforting the previous night, but right now it made her exceptionally nervous. During her breakdown, she could care less about the fact that the distance between them was practically nonexistent. The woman was way too busy covering his shirt with tears and snot. But right now? Well, it was a whole other story.

"Oh." Was her brilliant reply. It was only now that she noticed the flecks of grey in his black eye. It was fairly interesting, not something out of the ordinary, but it still amazed her. Or maybe she was just surprised by his intense gaze.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine. It's always just a temporary thing…" She shrugged, letting her hands slip out of his hair. He caught her right hand with a swift move, holding it in his much larger one.

"I will be with you whenever there's a storm, you don't have to be all alone." Her breath got caught in her throat and she felt herself at a loss for words.

She started chewing on her lower lip, her gaze not meeting his. "Thank you." After a few heartbeats, Sakura continued. "You are the first person who saw me being like this."

In fact, he was the first to hear her recounting what happened back then. Most of the people of her country already knew that her parents got assassinated and only she and Naruto survived. She really didn't want to further elaborate on the circumstances. Besides, in the beginning, she and the blonde boy shared their grief with each other. And when Naruto left, she buried herself in her studies and diplomatic duties. But no matter how many days passed, she still couldn't say that she was completely healed. But maybe this is how things worked.

Tsunade tried to send her to a few sessions with a psychologist, to talk about her trauma and whatnot, but the pink haired girl refused to do so. Sakura always thought that her feelings about the whole ordeal should be kept to herself. Not only because she hated seeing the pitiful look of people whenever they got reminded of the fact that she lost her family, but because this was the only way she knew how to cope with her past. But with each stormy night, the carefully sealed memories burst out, and she found herself curled up in a ball and crying till it became painful for her to even blink. By the time she started to even _consider_ seeking some form of help, it was too late. She was already sixteen, almost an adult. People would think that it was childish of her to be hung up on events that happened such a long time ago.

The fact, that they don't know the reason for the attack, or even the identity of the culprits even today was also something that made it hard for her to find closure. Sure, there were assumptions that her father being an important diplomat and aunt Kushina being the second in line for the throne of Whirlpool made them important targets, it was all that, only speculation. And while knowing the reason for their deaths would never bring them back, it would've given her chance to somewhat close this gaping hole.

Kakashi started rubbing the back of her hand in circles, sending shivers down her spine, but also making a warm feeling emerging in the pit of her stomach. "Thank you for telling me." He tilted her chin up, their eyes meeting. Their moment was cut short when the door to her room opened and closed.

"Your Majesty?" Keiko asked, her feet becoming visible. Sakura climbed out from under the table, her cheeks becoming hotter with each second.

"Good morning, Keiko." The young girl curtseyed, but her eyes did not leave Kakashi's legs that were poking out from under the furniture. Well, it did look quite off-putting, to say the least.

"Is everything all right, Sakura-sama?" That's when Kakashi chose to follow suit and climb out. The teen emitted a barely audible squeak and bowed a perfect ninety degrees upon seeing her king.

"Good morning, Your Majesty." She said, her gaze fixed on the floor.

"Good morning, Keiko-chan." Kakashi smiled warmly.

"I am terribly sorry for interrupting you. I should leave." She started walking backward, maintaining her bow.

"Oh, you don't have to. I was planning to leave anyways. And please stop bowing…" He rubbed the back of his head, making his already disheveled silver mane a bigger mess. "See you at lunch?" He turned to Sakura, raising a brow.

She nodded. "Y-yeah."

"Good." Smiling, he kissed her forehead and left the room.

Sakura just stared absentmindedly at the door that closed behind his back. The spot where his masked lips contacted with her forehead tingled, making her all giddy inside for whatever reason. To be honest she felt like a naïve schoolgirl, who just got noticed by her longtime crush. The cherry on top was that Keiko was there to witness this whole ordeal from the front row. Wonderful.

"I should be going to the hospital." She headed towards the bathroom, wanting to take a quick shower before departing. "Could you please ready my clothes?"

"Of course." Keiko sported the same bewildered look as her.

…

Sakura almost fell back with her chair when a hand out of nowhere appeared in front of her eyes.

"Finally." Shizune sighed exasperatedly. The raven-haired woman was sitting on the other side of her desk. They were in the process of writing the final list of supplies that were needed before the opening of the hospital. At some unknown point, Sakura started thinking about the events of last night, and then their aftermath this morning. She felt her cheeks burning up after realizing that she completely zoned out.

"Sorry." She winced, playing with the pen between her fingers.

"Is there something I should be concerned about?"

"Nothing." Upon seeing the unimpressed look on the older woman's face, she continued. "Really, it's nothing. I just feel a little bit tired, that's all."

"Tell me about it." Shizune reclined in her seat, running a hand through her hair. "I have to explain each procedure to the trainees at least four times. And there's this idiot Shiranui trailing after me all day." Sakura couldn't help but chuckle at the mention of her chaperone.

"It's not funny." Shizune's eyes narrowed. "Could you maybe ask the king to get the man some other job?"

"It can't be that bad."

"Yeah, it can. Even though I beat him up." She mumbled the last part.

"You what?" The pinkette leaned forward, hoping that she just misheard everything.

"Well…I proved him that I do not need his services." Shizune looked to the side.

"You can't go around and beat the captain of the Royal Guard up!"

"I didn't beat him up…I just…threw him on the floor." She stated sheepishly.

Sakura did not look impressed at all. "Gosh, I hope that he didn't tell that to Kakashi. We would be in really big trouble otherwise." Her husband wouldn't be exhilarated by the fact that Shizune hurt his best friend. Or maybe he would laugh until his stomach hurt because of the fact that Genma got his ass kicked by someone barely reaching up to his chest. Who knows, the man had the tendency to surprise her with his behavior.

"But I did not have a choice; he was _so_ irritating that I just wanted to scare him away. There's a reason why I have to explain everything a bunch of times to the recruits. They keep staring at that bastard the whole time."

"Well, you can't really blame them now, can you? He's quite good looking."

Shizune's eyes narrowed. "His handsomeness does not change the fact that he's the most annoying, self-centered, womanizing-" She paused for a second to think about another infuriating quality that the man possessed. "chauvinistic person I've ever met."

"Such a detailed description."

"Oh, the list could go on and on, I'm just too tired to put more effort into it."

Amused, Sakura rested her chin on her palm. "You like him." She stated simply, earning the woman sitting in front of her to choke on her saliva.

"What?!" Shizune asked after composing herself. "I'd rather end up as a cat lady than to even _consider_ dating him." The mischievous smile Sakura sported made her feel uneasy.

"I wasn't talking about you dating him. But now that you say-"

"No! Sakura, stop there! I refuse to have my relationship with him labeled as romantic!"

"But it's been so long since you had an actual boyfriend."

"He won't be the one to break this tradition. And don't you dare!" The older woman pointed an accusing finger at Sakura, knowing far too well that she'll somehow try to play matchmaker.

"What? I did nothing."

"And you won't." She turned back to the papers she was reading several minutes ago, considering their discussion finished.

…

He was disappointed once again upon seeing Sakura's empty seat in their dining room. Apparently, she got completely flooded with paperwork at the hospital and did not want to waste precious time with coming home to eat her meal. His spirits were visibly deflated, but at least he'll have enough opportunities to ponder about what yesterday's storm has brought to them.

Kakashi could still remember how he was leisurely sitting in his room, in an armchair, reading a book he had recently obtained. The sound of the storm acted as background music to the engaging storyline. Everything changed the moment a chain of thunder and lightning caused a power outage. Had it been any other time, he would've shrugged it off and waited patiently for the generators to start working again. But the shrieking from the nearby room made him stand up immediately, the armchair moving a few centimeters backward.

"Sakura!" He ran towards the door that they shared, but it was locked from the other side. "Sakura!" His palms banged on the wooden surface, but nothing happened. Being far too impatient, he ran outside to the balcony, surveying the gap between the two room's terraces. It wasn't wider than two meters, an obstacle that he could easily overcome.

He walked a few steps backward, and then started running towards the railing, jumping as high as he could. Kakashi landed in a crouching position on the other side, straightening himself up and hurrying towards the balcony door.

"No! Help me! Someone, please!" Sakura screamed.

He rushed inside, looking around the room, but he saw no one. It took him a few seconds to find the pinkette. She was sitting under the table, her disheveled state apparent even though there was barely any light inside the room.

"Sakura! Sakura, it's me!" He kneeled down in front of her, grabbing his upper arms. "Are you hurt? What happened?" It was really hard to tell whether she sustained any kind of injury.

"I'm…" A scream left her lips the moment another thunder came. He didn't have to be a genius to know that the source of her fright was the storm. Next thing he knew, he was crawling under the table, sitting beside Sakura.

Kakashi held her close to him, trying everything he could to calm the shaking woman down. His arms were still around her even after the storm was long gone. There was obviously a reason why she got so frightened, and even though it made him extremely curious to know the story behind it, he didn't want to put pressure on her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" The words spilled out of his mouth before he could stop himself. She looked at him with teary eyes, swallowing hard.

"Do you want to…um…go somewhere else?" She asked instead, clearly referring to his not so comfortable position under the table. While Kakashi wanted to say immediately yes, due to the awkward angle he had to hold his head, the space felt cozy nonetheless. It was like they were able to hide from the whole world.

"No, we can stay here. I quite like it actually." He crinkled his visible eye.

Sakura leaned back in her seat, folding her hands on her lap. Her shaky lips started moving after a few heartbeats of silence, revealing to him events of a past he did not know about. That time he did not realize the full significance of her actions, being too busy caressing her back as she recited that horrible night. It was only the morning after that the meaning of it truly sank in.

The information Sakura revealed to him was so unexpected, so not characteristic of their relationship, that it left him truly baffled. They were getting close; he would even dare to say that they were akin to two friends, but he would've never expected that she would disclose such a tragic moment in her life to him.

And he felt honored that she confided him. Sure, it was him who barged into her room and rushed to her side, but the pink haired woman could've chosen not to tell the reason for her distress. And he would've accepted her choice.

But she took another route and the whole dynamic of their relationship changed. For the better. So, the little cogs in his brain started to work automatically. How can he show her that he trusted her as much as she did? If he wanted this marriage to work out, he should do the same thing. Share with her the most hurtful moment in his life: the story behind his mask and eyepatch. This was something that only his closest friends knew about, and only because they were there to witness it all. He never, even once discussed the happenings with anyone since then.

Just the thought of doing something like this made him really uncomfortable. He was not used to talk about himself in any kind of aspect. Kakashi always thought that his history was something that was nobody's business. But he had to do this. He had to show her that he trusted Sakura enough to open up to her.

Tonight will be the night.

…

Sakura flopped face first on her bed the moment she entered her room. Her body was still aching from yesterday night's improvised 'bed', and it did not help that she couldn't remember the time she actually got a good night's sleep. Heck, she was too tired to even change into her pajamas.

"Why?" She growled into the sheets upon hearing a knock on her door. Slowly, she crawled out of bed and walked towards her door. But the knocking wasn't coming from that one; it was coming from behind her. She looked at the door she shared with Kakashi, her brows furrowing in confusion. Twisting the lock, she opened the other entrance.

Kakashi entered her room instantly, leaving no chance for her to even properly invite him inside. He walked straight towards her desk; Sakura stared at his retreating back in utter confusion. He then did something that was even stranger: pulled down the mask that was covering his face, the black cloth pooling at his neck.

"I think it's about time I told you my story." He said, sitting under the table.

* * *


	19. Maskless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I was so ashamed of what he did. Because of his actions, the Hatake name became associated with people who could not do their job right. And then I resented him for caring more about ending his life in order to save face, than about me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a little New Year's present from yours truly!  
> Sorry for the late update.  
> Thanks for reading, commenting and giving kudos, you guys really keep me going!

It was really hard for her to believe that the man beside her was Hatake Kakashi. Had it not been for his trademark silver hair, she would've thought that she was sitting next to someone else. This was the first time that Sakura saw his bare face, and boy did it exceed all of her expectations.

Most importantly, Hatake Kakashi did not have pointy teeth with which he feasted on the hearts of his enemies. Not that she believed this urban legend in the first place. What he did have instead was a sharp jawline, a mole on his chin, a full bottom lip and a thinner upper one, and a slightly crooked nose. Up until now, she thought that the reason why he was wearing the eyepatch was because he was missing an eye, but she proved to be wrong. The organ looked to be completely healthy, the only unusual feature it had was how red the iris was. There was a long vertical scar running from his eyelid until the middle of his cheek, and it was a miracle really, that he didn't lose the sight in that particular eye due to the severity of that injury. Or maybe this was the reason why his covered eye looked different…maybe he got it transplanted, but then why did he cover it?

It took all of her self-restraint not to shower him with the myriad of questions that surfaced with each ticking minute. She'd known Kakashi for almost half a year now, but she barely knew anything about him…well, anything pertaining to his private life that is. She could probably find out pretty easily the number of his military decorations and successes in battles, but this kind of information revealed almost nothing about who this man really was.

"It seems like you grew really fond of this place." Sakura chuckled, trying to light the solemn mood. His lips formed a crooked smile for a few seconds, but that was all the response she got from him. Her anticipation for him to finally start talking grew with each heartbeat, but she did not want to rush him. Considering the fact that he had just shown her his bare face, this story of his was going to be something big.

Laughing bitterly, he ran a hand through his hair. "It's harder than I thought."

"How about some other time?" She offered. Though she was burning with curiosity, she did not want to put pressure on him.

"No." Kakashi shook his head, looking at her. "I want to tell you everything _tonight_." She smiled encouragingly up at him. Finally, he mustered up enough courage to start his story.

"There was a time when I wasn't wearing this mask. I was a really insecure child…constantly afraid of anything that was new, be it people or places. I would always hide behind my mother, wanting nothing more than to disappear. But she would have none of it." He smiled fondly, remembering the disapproving look on his mother's face. "She'd look into my eyes and tell me that there was nothing to be afraid of. That she'll be right beside me. Her words and her presence alone made me more confident."

His expression darkened after a few heartbeats. "She had a stroke when I was six and died a few days after." She bit down on her lip, not sure how to react to what he said.

"Since my father was away from home most of the time, my relationship with him wasn't as close as it was with my mother. He had no clue about what to do with a child, so he left me home shortly after the funeral." His voice was filled with spite. "When I was old enough, he sent me to military school. With a whole new place and people, my anxiety reached a whole new peak. Frankly, there was no day when I didn't wish for my mother to be there and assure that everything's going to be all right. I didn't want my teachers or classmates see how affected I was, so I started to wear this mask."

"Then…when I thought that things couldn't get worse, they actually did. Because of my father's tactics, Fire lost a really important battle. He got shunned by the whole country, and ended his life."

A huge weight settled inside her throat at his words. Even more so when she remembered that she actually read about this incident during her history lessons. Hatake Sakumo was the 13th marshal of the Land of Fire. His military successes made him a widely respected person inside and outside of the country. But it was all futile when he decided to change strategy in order to save his men from certain death, making them lose the battle. The loss the country had to suffer because of him was so severe, that he was stripped of his title and became an outcast. Even the soldiers that were saved by him resented him for doing so. The circumstances of his death were not disclosed inside the book, but the really short span of time between being outcast and his funeral spoke volumes about what happened to him.

"I was so ashamed of what he did. Because of his actions, the Hatake name became associated with people who could not do their job right. And then I resented him for caring more about ending his life in order to save face, than about me. He knew that if he left this world behind, I would be all alone. I would have no one. But he did it nonetheless." Despite his words, he did not seem angry.

"I wanted to prove to everyone that I was not like him. That when the time came, I would choose the success of the mission rather than the lives of those participating in it. I was already promoted to first lieutenant by the age of 16…only a year after enlisting." A shudder went down Sakura's spine, to become a soldier at 15? The man sitting beside her was already a capable soldier, while she read shiny papered girly magazines with Ino at the same age.

"I abided each and every rule…I could recite them even in my dream. I had no friends, not even acquaintances since I considered them a hindrance. My personal motto was: 'Those who break the rules are trash'. But yet again, everything changed."

"A few years after that, we had a territory dispute with Earth. I was recently promoted to the rank of captain and had my own little squad that got dispatched to the scene. One of its members was an Uchiha, his name was Obito. He wasn't the most talented soldier, and I always thought that the only reason why he reached the rank of first lieutenant was because of his family name. He, on the other hand, thought that I was a snob prick, but he wasn't too far away from the truth in all honesty." He chuckled, earning a wry smile from the woman sitting beside him.

"I was overly confident in my capabilities and missed some critical points, resulting in one of my soldiers being captured. Obito had…romantic interests in her and demanded that we abandon the mission and rescue her instead, but I refused." It was quite clear for Sakura the reason why he refused to do so. The uncanny resemblance between her father's case and his was bone chilling.

"It all went clearly against my beliefs, and I told him that only trash abandoned their mission, that my father was trash because of this very reason. And then everything changed… Obito told me, that my father was not trash, that what he did was something to be admired, and not to feel ashamed of. Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash."

"His words completely changed my view. I felt ashamed that I was so ready to abandon someone, just because I wanted to bring back the glory to my clan's name. We located our teammate that very day and were so close to rescuing her, but then I got too cocky and one of the soldiers from Earth wounded me. I lost sight in my left eye, and our situation turned for the worse. The cave in which we were in started collapsing and a boulder almost crushed me, had it not been for Obito. He shoved me away and he got crushed by it."

He could still vividly recall the sound his bones made as they got crushed by the immense rock. It rang vividly in his ears, even though pandemonium was breaking out in their surroundings. He looked at Sakura from the corner of his eye, her shocked expression not surprising him at all.

"Half of his body remained unscathed…and since I lost my eye, Obito gave me his as a final gift. Rin, our teammate was a field medic and performed the transplant on site."

Sakura's chin slackened upon hearing his words. An eye transplant in a collapsed cave? She lost count of the risks the whole procedure held in a matter of seconds. Transplanting an eye was something really tricky, so Rin must've been someone extremely competent.

"Obito wanted me to have the eye so that he could see the future throughout me. He made me promise, that I would live, so that his wish could be fulfilled." His voice was strained. She grabbed his calloused hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "In the beginning I didn't cover it. But it was just so hard, people always wondered about why did I have an eye that was so characteristic of the Uchihas. They would ask questions, so many questions. After a year or so, I decided to wear an eyepatch." Kakashi gazed at her small hand on top of his. Her appendage was so delicate compared to his, while her skin was as soft as silk, his was rough and calloused.

"Losing my eye and gaining a new one wasn't the only thing that changed about me after the incident. Loyalty became far more important to me than abiding the rules. I started caring about the people who were entrusted to me and didn't view them as tools to achieve a greater good. At least I hope I did."

The silence that followed his words seemed to be endless. Sakura had no idea of what she should say, or how should she react to everything that just took place. Did she really agree that the man sitting next to her changed completely from his teenaged self? But most importantly, was she in the right position to judge him? To say that her opinion about him was prejudiced was an understatement. Even after all the twists and turns their relationship has taken in this past couple of months, her initial resentment towards him didn't vanish. She might not be as vocal about is as previously, but the feeling was still present.

On the other hand, she could partially understand all his actions that lead to their marriage. As a king it was his priority to protect the people under him, not to abandon them. In this perspective, Kakashi was most definitely not the same person as his 16-year-old counterpart.

Feeling unsure, she let her instincts kick in and did what she _felt_ was right and not _thought_. Her slim digits entwined with his, squeezing gently and earning his full attention.

"I'm sure that you changed." She cracked a smile, earning one from him as well. It was still so unusual for her to see his bare face. Her free hand moved up to his cheek, stopping only mere millimeters away from the scar that bisected his eye. Kakashi slightly nodded his head, giving his silent permission for her to touch him. Her hesitant fingers traced the vertical line that bisected his cheek. He leaned slightly into her touch, his mismatched eyes closing for a brief second. Her digits lingered on the edge of the blemish, and then dropped back into her lap.

They sat in silence once again, both unsure of how they should proceed onwards. Sakura felt the lack of sleep catching up to her; she tried to stifle a yawn but failed miserably.

"I think we should go to bed." Kakashi stated, earning a confused look from the woman sitting beside him. "I mean…to our separate ones." He clarified.

"Yes." Sakura nodded, climbing out from under the table, Kakashi soon following suit. The awkward silence that followed made both of them feel uncomfortable.

"Why did you tell me your story?" She asked the question that was nagging at her ever since he sat under the desk.

"After last night I thought that it's only fair if I'm honest with you too." Though he tried to state it as nonchalantly as possible, the woman knew that what he did was a big deal. He has shown her that he trusts her, and while she still didn't know how deep this trust ran, she was content in knowing that at least it existed. Right now, at the scene of such an important step in their relationship Sakura refused to ponder on the other, more negative things that affected their marriage.

Sakura was so engulfed in her thoughts that she barely noticed him moving toward the door that connected their rooms. The silver-haired man was about to step over the threshold, when her arms encircled his waist from behind, making him freeze in his steps.

"Thank you for telling me." She whispered, her forehead against his spine. In that very moment, she didn't have a clue about what came over her…it wasn't characteristic of their relationship to act this physically intimate with each other behind closed doors. But this was the best way she could show him her gratitude for what he did yesterday and today.

That night, for the first time ever, the door separating their rooms remained open on both sides.


End file.
